What a Great End to a Great Month

Today marked the end of the Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program. Twelve events have occurred throughout November with nine primary schools, five kindergartens, one playgroup and the Gannawarra Children’s Centre all participating.

Funded by VicHealth, the Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program has been a fantastic partnership project supported by a range of partners including Gannawarra Shire Council, Northern District Community Health, Kerang District Health, Cohuna District Hospital, the Mallee Sports Assembly and the Southern Mallee Primary Care Partnership. In addition, year 9 students from the Kerang Technical High School and Cohuna Secondary College have come along to assist at the events. Partnerships have also developed with and between primary schools, kindergartens and playgroups as a result of these activities.

A great deal of support was received from businesses who provided breakfast products - Kelloggs and Sanitarium donated a range of cereals, Fonterra provided yoghurt, Pauls provided milk and orange juice, our local IGA supermarket donated vegemite and butter, and our local bakery provided all the bread required for toast, plus a rotary toaster.

Approximately 900 children have participated in the events throughout November plus teachers, parents, younger siblings and community supporters. Involvement in the VicHealth Walk to School program formed part of the Gannawarra Shire Council's commitment to encouraging healthy lifestyles and building on local partnerships to support health and wellbeing outcomes for our communities.

This Blog has been a great way to spread the Walk to School message and to connect schools across the Gannawarra Shire together. We hope you have enjoyed our Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast stories.

Even if you are now a big person and you no longer have the opportunity to walk to school or the school bus, walking is a great way to get to know your community, to meet other people, take in some fresh air, and check out what’s going on in the environment around you.

So, pull on your walking shoes and get walking…..

Cohuna Pre School

A big surprise was waiting when children and families arrived at the Cohuna Pre-School this morning with a special healthy breakfast and an obstacle course set up in their backyard. The event was the final Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast event to be held in the Gannawarra Shire as part of the VicHealth funded Walk to School project.

 

Children arrived with a bowl, cup and spoon in hand and waited patiently on the mat enjoying a song until everyone was settled. Some children had walked to kinder, others has scooted or ridden their bikes. Lots of mums and younger siblings came along as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Council’s Health and Wellbeing Planner, Narelle O’Donoghue, spoke to the children about the importance of being active and filling little tummies with healthy breakfast foods like cereal, toast, yoghurt and milk in readiness for a busy day of playing and learning.

 

Year 9 students from Cohuna Secondary College assisted the children with their breakfast choices and helped get wobbly bowls of cereal back to tables. Cr. Mark Arians presented each child with a “It’s Cool to Walk to School” sticker.  

 

Following breakfast the children raced outside to enjoy the obstacle course. There was lots of laughter and chatter as children practiced balancing on the balancing beam and stepping stones, climbed over ramps, swinging bridges, and scuttled through tunnels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was lots of fun had by all and it was a great way to finish off what has been a month long celebration of walking and healthy eating across the Gannawarra Shire.

Koondrook Primary School

It really is Cool to Walk to School! That’s the message children at the Koondrook Primary School took away from their participation in the Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program held on Thursday 28 November.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The back verandah of the new Koondrook school building became an outdoor café as children from both the primary school and kindergarten enjoyed a healthy breakfast. Tummies were filled with a healthy range of cereals, milk, orange juice, yoghurt and toast. Sharing breakfast with friends is a fantastic way to start the school day and prepare the body and mind for the day ahead. It was great to have lots of mums turn up to support the event and to assist with the breakfast.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Following breakfast a special viewing of the Gannawarra Walk to School media clip occurred. Children from Koondrook Primary played a big role in putting together the media clip and were acknowledged for sharing their Walk to School stories and encouraging other children living in the Gannawarra Shire to be active and healthy.

 

Cr. Keith den Houting represented the Gannawarra Shire Council and told the children how important it was to make healthy choices now so that they grow up to be healthy adults. He said practicing a healthy lifestyle in primary school is so important to enjoying good health throughout the teenage years and into adulthood. Cr. den Houting’s twin granddaughters attend the Koondrook Pre-School and enjoyed having their Pa at the event.

 

Amy, an Occupational Therapist with Northern District Community Health, spoke to the children about the importance of being physically active for at least 60 minutes every day and to incorporate a range of healthy food choices into their diets. Her role as an Occupational Therapist is to help people gain strength and balance, perhaps after they have suffered from a fall or an illness. Amy told the children that being active and eating healthy foods helps control body weight and prevent illnesses later in life like heart disease, diabetes and stroke. Strong muscles and bones are important so that our bodies aren’t injured so easily when we lose our balance and fall.

Three prizes were awarded to students for their commitment to walking to school or the school bus and these students are sure to enjoy spending their $10 vouchers at local businesses in the lead up to Christmas.

Most days of the week the school children walk or run a 750 metre circuit around the school grounds with older students doing three laps and younger students two laps. This helps to keep the children fit and strong for when they compete in interschool and cross country events. Today the kindergarten children, teachers, parents and visitors joined in the walk taking in the views of the Murray River which meanders around the school grounds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The event finished with the children participating in a ‘community circle’ where each child told the group the most important message they had taken from today’s event and an action that they would do as a result – some said that they wanted to  increase their fitness to at least 1 hour each day, others wanted to increase fruit and vegetable consumption, limit processed foods, eat a healthy breakfast before school, reduce foods that contained additives and to walk to school more often.  
 

The Koondrook event was the eleventh planned activity across the Gannawarra Shire as part of the Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program. The final event will be held at the Cohuna Pre-School on Friday 29 November commencing at 9am.

Bringing it Home for Walk to School Month

Bring it Home for the Last Few Days of Walk to School Month

Throughout the whole month of November, primary schools across Victoria have been championing active travel through whole-school walking activities, breakfast events, classroom activities and more.

At the end of week three, students across the State had completed an average of seven active journeys to or from school, and walked an average of eight kilometres each since the start of November. What a great effort!

Many more, like primary schools across the Gannawarra Shire, have been recording walks to and from school on classroom calendars. These calendars will be collected on Monday 2 December and sent to VicHealth so that Gannawarra schools can contribute to the final state-wide tallies.

There’s only two more day of Walk to School month so Gannawarra children - get those walking shoes moving and let’s make it count! 

Cohuna Consolidated School

The 205 children attending the Cohuna Consolidated School enjoyed a healthy breakfast in glorious sunshine on Tuesday 26 November. The event was part of the Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program occurring at twelve locations across the Shire during November. Children enjoyed a range of cereals, yoghurt, toast with honey and vegemite, a glass of milk or orange juice and platters of delicious fruit provided by the school community – the fresh berries were a great hit!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Following breakfast the children, teachers, wider school community and visitors assembled to hear the Gannawarra Shire Council’s representative and Deputy Mayor, Cr. Lorraine Learmonth speak about Council’s involvement in the VicHealth Walk to School program. The program is part of Council’s commitment to encouraging healthy lifestyles and building on partnerships to support the health and wellbeing of our communities. She highlighted that the program was supported by a range of partners including primary schools, kindergartens/playgroups, Kerang Technical High School, Cohuna Secondary College, Northern District Community Health, Kerang District Health, Cohuna District Hospital, the Southern Mallee Primary Care Partnership and the Mallee Sports Assembly.

 

Cohuna Secondary College students who are part of the Year 9 Future Leaders program were acknowledged for assisting with the breakfast along with other community members who had helped including Cathy from the Cohuna Neighbourhood House and Council staff. Cr. Learmonth highlighted that it was a great privilege for Council to be leading the way in supporting communities to be active and healthy and thanked the school for participating and for their ongoing work in encouraging healthy children.

 

Alexia, a Community Health Nurse with Northern District Community Health, spoke to the children about the importance of being physically active and incorporating at least 5 serves of vegetables and 2 serves of fruit into the daily diets. The children interacted using ‘thumbs up, thumbs down’ to indicate whether they liked or disliked named vegetables and fruit with watermelon, carrots and apples receiving the best response. All are great lunchbox options.

 

The event ended with children and teachers walking or running two laps of the track around the school grounds with each lap covering a distance of approximately 750 metres. The children regularly run or walk this circuit to keep fit and healthy. Following the walk, some children returned to class to view the Gannawarra Walk to School media clip while other classes participated in another 30 minutes of physical activity before settling into a day of learning.

 

The next Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast event will take place at Koondrook Primary School on Thursday 28 November 2013 commencing with a healthy breakfast at 9am.

 

Remember, walking is a great activity for the whole family to enjoy. It helps to strengthen muscles, control weight and keep the body in tip top condition. So make sure you pull on your walking shoes, and get walking….

Lake Charm Primary School

Lake Charm Primary School’s Walk to School activity on Friday 22 November focused on the Five Ways to Wellbeing encouraging children to be aware of their physical health as well as their mental health. The Five Ways to Well-being are a set of evidence-based actions which promote people’s wellbeing. They are: Connect, Be Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning and Give. These activities are simple things individuals can do in their everyday lives and through active practice of these actions, a healthier community can be encouraged.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The event started with the school bus dropping children, parents, teachers and visitors off at the Lake Charm Boat Ramp for a walk along the 1.5 kilometres of walking tracks through the sandhills back to school. The walk allowed the group to connect with each other while being active and taking notice of the world around them. The group took time to read the historical signage along the way as well as information boards on local fauna and flora.  This was a great way for the children and adults to learn more about the built and natural environments.

 

There were plenty of dangers to be aware of during the walk with senior girls at the front and rear of the group responsible for tapping the ground with walking sticks to discourage snakes (luckily we didn’t see any!) and a crossing of the busy Loddon Valley Highway was carefully planned with older children ‘buddying’ up with younger children to safely pass from one side to the other. This was a great lesson in giving and doing something nice to help others.

 

Back at school the children enjoyed a healthy outdoor breakfast before viewing the Gannawarra Walk to School media clip. Cr. Brian Gibson represented the Gannawarra Shire at the event and said how great it was to see so many happy and healthy children. Although the majority of the children attending the Lake Charm Primary School are unable to walk to school, many had either walked or cycled to their bus stops. This is a fantastic way to keep fit and active and to prepare for a day of learning at school.

Claire, a Community Health Nurse from Northern District Community Health, spoke to the children about the importance of healthy eating and physical activity. She used the food guidelines to open up discussion on the types of foods we should all be eating as well as the quantities – lots of healthy carbohydrates for energy, at least 5 serves of different coloured vegetables for vitamins and minerals, 2 serves of fruits, some lean cuts of meat, legumes, eggs and nuts for protein and a small amount of fats and oils. The children talked about how they incorporate healthy foods into their diets and discussed ‘sometimes’ foods like lollies, bars, chips and pizza that are high in fat, sugar and salt. Portion sizes were also discussed using a portion size plate as a guide. Half of the plate should be filled with vegetables or salad, one quarter with a protein source such as lean meat, and one quarter with a carbohydrate like rice, pasta or grain.

 

Scott was awarded with a prize for walking to school each day. He is in Year Four and with 100% attendance at school, a quick calculation revealed that Scott walks to school 200 days each year, or 1,000 times over the 5 years he has attended the school.  What a great effort!

The School Principal thanked the Gannawarra Shire Council and Northern District Community Health for working with the Lake Charm Primary School on this event saying that it has a great way to encourage families and children to think about their food choices and to make physical activity part of everyday routines.

The event finished with the Principal leading a mindfulness session which the whole school participates in each day. The 10 minute session encouraged quite reflection and relaxation. The children reported that practicing mindfulness helps them to focus more on their learning and to sleep better at night.

 

The Lake Charm event was the ninth Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast event planned for the Gannawarra Shire during the month of November.

Gannawarra Shire Children's Centre

The Kangaroo, Koala and Wombat rooms at the Gannawarra Children’s Centre all got to enjoy a healthy breakfast this morning in their new landscaped backyard. The backyard, complete with chooks, was a great setting with children ranging in age from about 8 months to pre-schoolers coming out with bowls, cups and spoons in hand to select from the healthy food choices available.

 

Year 9 students from the Kerang Technical High School helped the children to feel comfortable in making their selections and then assisted with carrying wobbly bowls of cereal and milk and drinks back to classroom tables. Even children who didn’t initially want breakfast ended up joining in and came back to try different foods on offer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once all the children (and chooks) were well fed, they had lots of energy to use up running and playing in the yard. Some dug in the sand, others climbed on the monkey bars, played tiggy, slid down the slide or enjoyed some water play. The high school children had a fantastic time playing with the children and at the end of the day neither the high school children or the children at the centre wanted the fun to end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The event demonstrated in very simple terms the importance of a healthy diet in helping to support health, wellbeing and learning outcomes of children during the early years.

 

The next Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast event will be held at the Lake Charm Primary School on Friday 22nd November commencing with a walk from the Lake Charm Boat Ramp back to school. This will be followed by a healthy ‘breakfast style’ morning tea and a viewing of the Gannawarra Walk to School media clip.

More details on Lake Charm’s event on Friday. Until then, remember to keep on walking….

Kerang Pre School

Children attending the Kerang Pre-School received a big surprise when a healthy breakfast was waiting for them on arrival yesterday morning. Some children had walked to kinder or ridden their bikes and others had arrived on the school buses. Most had hungry tummies and were eager to tuck into a healthy breakfast to build up energy levels before outside playtime.

Council’s Health and Wellbeing Planner Narelle O’Donoghue spoke to the children about the importance of walking and being active and the need for little tummies to be filled with healthy foods that provide lots of energy for their busy days. There was lots of discussion about healthy foods the children like eating and the activities they like to enjoy at kinder and home.   
 

 

The children tried lots of different types of cereals, toast with honey or vegemite, milk, juice and yoghurt. They enjoyed the selection on offer and when everyone was satisfied the children eagerly lined up at the door ready for outdoor activity time which involved lots of running, climbing, and of course walking.

 

 

 

Stayed tuned for more Walk to School messages throughout the week…

Walk to School Update...

What a fantastic effort – students from primary schools across Victoria involved in the VicHealth Walk to School program have travelled more than 22,000 kilometres since the start of November!

Quambatook Primary School

A special Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast event was held at Quambatook Primary School on Friday.

All nine students attending Quambatook Primary School walk to school each day and today they were able to tuck into a healthy breakfast when they arrived. It was great to have a number of parents come along and enjoy the experience with their children.

 

Cr. Mark Arians represented the Gannawarra Shire Council and said that it was great to see so many primary schools and kindergartens across the shire get involved in the Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program. He said that the program was part of Council’s commitment to encouraging healthy lifestyles and to build on partnerships to support the health and wellbeing of our communities.

Yvonne a Northern District community health nurse based at Quambatook encouraged the children to make physical activity and healthy eating part of their daily routines so that they grow up strong and remain healthy throughout their adult lives. She spoke about different types of physical activity the children enjoy at Quambatook such as walking to and from school, being active at recess and lunchtime, playing sports, and swimming at the local pool during the hotter months of the year. The children also participate in 15 minutes of activity before going into class each day and at present they are practicing their skipping routines for the end of year concert.

Council’s Health and Wellbeing Planner, Narelle O’Donoghue, thanked the Quambatook Primary School for participating in the program and acknowledged the school children’s involvement in the new Gannawarra Walk to School media clip. She told the children that they had become “Walk to School Ambassadors” by encouraging other children across the shire to be active.

Brandon, Sarah and Kyle were the winners of the Walk to School poster competition and they were each presented with a $10 gift voucher to use at local businesses. Each child received a “It’s cool to walk to school” sticker

The school principal thanked everyone involved in the Gannawarra Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast program and said how much the school had loved being involved. The children are proudly recording their walks to and from school each day on the classroom calendar and knowing that their walk to school kilometres will add to the tally across the whole of Victoria.

 

 
As a special surprise the students announced that they had been researching places of interest within their town and would like to take the visitors on a town tour. The one hour walk that followed was full of interesting facts and snippets about the history of Quambatook and included the former Bush Nursing Hospital, that Quambatook once had three hotels, a butcher, baker, general store and a host of other businesses including the Boomerang Café where John Williamson used to play at before he became famous. The children escorted the group down the staircase into the cellar below the general store which maintains its original century old features.

The town tour ended with a walk along the walking tracks following the picturesque Avoca River back to the school. Along the way the group looked at how high the water got during the January 2011 floods and heard how the community pulled together to save the town. We looked in the water and saw beetles and yabbies and picked up leaves, feathers and other ‘treasures’ along the way.

 

The walk was a great way to explore and learn about the environment and for the children to share their knowledge and gain a greater appreciation of what their community has to offer.

This week Walk to School and Healthy Breakfast events will be held at the Kerang Pre-School on Tuesday 19^th November, the Gannawarra Children’s Centre on Wednesday 20^th November and Lake Charm Primary School on Friday 22^nd November.