SAN BENITO — Any school that has the desire to change the lives of children has what it takes.
That’s what Principal Diana Atkinson said about her school – Rangerville Elementary.
The school was recently named one of America’s Healthiest Schools by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.
The school met several stringent standards set by the Alliance’s Healthy Schools Program.
This includes serving healthier meals and snacks, getting students moving more, offering high-quality physical and health education and empowering school leaders to become healthy role models.
“With the guidance and direction from the Alliance’s Healthy Schools Program, we have seen such great successes in this implementation process,” Atkinson said.
Aside from home, kids spend most of their time at school, making schools important places to influence kids’ behavior and lifelong health habits. Research shows healthy students learn better.
“Our school is the ideal setting for teaching youth all about adopting and maintaining healthy habits in both nutrition education and physical fitness,” said Atkinson.
“At Rangerville Elementary our mantra is Healthy Bodies; Healthy Minds.
By instilling this mantra, school staff is seeing the benefits of their hard work to promote a culture of health and wellness at school.
“We have literally seen the lives of students changing right before our eyes,” said Atkinson.
The school provides many opportunities for physical activity throughout the day.
They have increased the amount of daily recess for their students, allowing more minutes of movement to keep the students energized.
In the classroom, students participate in physical activity breaks that get them out of their seats, which helps students stay ready to learn all day long.
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