By

Domonique Lewis,   Jones Elementary School

Play:

After-School Drills and Skills

Topics:

Community Involvement,  Physical Activity Participation

Jones Elementary Eagles invite 160 a week to join in fun teambuilding physical activities 3 days a week before school starts. After implementation of this program, our breakfast attendance and student behavior instantly improved. Showing up for breakfast is a requirement, and shortly following students make their way to the gym and outdoor fields for play. Community members from different sports organizations have joined in and coach students in swimming on scooters, flag football, soccer, basketball, and softball.

How do you plan to make this Play last during the school year and beyond?

The coaching staff started the program in October, and we used small groups. Each coach took a day for monitoring and we added parent volunteers who coach sports and community leaders to help with students. As we received more community involvement, we added more kids.

What improvements have you seen at your school?

We have seen our breakfast attendance and student behavior improve from a wide range of students.

How did students and adults work together as a team?

Students and adults worked together by helping understanding sportsmanship in everything we do. Developing respect for the differences in skill levels of different students and making accommodations for special needs students involved.