The Project LEAD after-school programs at Lincoln, Garfield, and Wakefield Elementary have been helping kids have fun and learn at the same time since 2011. Much of the program’s success can be attributed to grants and donations that have been obtained over the years. Starting in January, two of these are helping kids learn more about healthy habits.
Thanks to a donation from the Clay Counts Coalition, “Too Good for Drugs and Violence” has been taught in Clay Center on Fridays starting in January. The program teaches five essential social & emotional learning skills, which research has linked with healthy development and academic success. These include:
Making healthy choices
Identifying emotions
Communicating effectively
Setting and reaching goals
Managing peer influence
Students build their skills from lessons infused with games, activities, crafts, and skits. An example of this includes activities where students learn to recognize positive and negative peer pressure and learn and apply peer‐pressure refusal strategies and habits.
“ By learning about the dangers of drugs and violence, students can make better decisions that keep them safe and healthy. Students learn how to resist peer pressure and stand up against negative influences," said Project LEAD program director Tracy Wohler. "This confidence helps them make positive choices in their lives. Using the 'Too Good for Drugs and Violence' program is a great way to help students grow into healthy, confident, and responsible adults that are prepared for life’s hard moments."
Another habit-creating initiative is the “Heathy Habits” grant, which was obtained through Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas Foundation. The grant’s goal is to promote healthy lifestyle choices to students across Kansas, including:
Reducing cardiovascular risk
Increasing physical activity
Learning healthy eating habits
Reinforcing positive mental health
Project LEAD is using the grant money to purchase healthy snacks they give students on Fridays. The hope is that curbing childhood obesity and improving mental health will translate into healthy adults later, saving health care dollars for all Kansans.
“This grant has allowed us to purchase fresh fruits and vegetable foods that are the building blocks of a healthy lifestyle," Wohler said. "Students are able to learn about healthy food choices that keep their brain and body strong through good nutrition. When students say I never knew this was so good, and I want this at home we are building good food habits that last a lifetime. As healthy food choices develop students will create recipes and snacks that they will share with their peers.”