This came about from an in-service on brain-gym which pointed out that drinking water was important to help children get ready to learn. Many children came to school without drinking any liquid so their brains were dehydrated and couldn't work properly.
In Coupar Angus Primary School every class has jugs of iced water each morning. The children have their own mugs which they wash out themselves. The older children bring their mugs to their desks and the younger children have a time to drink the water. It's very popular with the children. At first it was a great novelty, now some need a bit of encouraging to drink the water.
Every evening the classroom assistant puts the bags of ice-cubes in the fridge and then in the morning she makes up the jugs of water. Environmental Health have checked the water supply to see that it is us up to standard.
We didn't bring in water for health reasons but there is an obvious health benefit. The only problem staff find is that the infants drink the water and are then running to the toilet. For the staff, we looked into Water at Work, but unfortunately it is too expensive.
Contact:
PRISCILLA WEBSTER
Specialist Health Promotion Service
Tayside NHS Board
7 Dudhope Terrace
Dundee
DD3 6HG
Tel: 01382 228213
A report by Linzie E G Porteous and Yvonne Carling
A research project to find out whether breakfast clubs could make a significant contribution to food intake, educational performance and care was funded by Health Improvement money and carried out by Dundee City Education Department. Three schools piloted different models of service delivery in the summer term of 2001.
The report on these breakfast clubs states that a "breakfast club staffed by catering staff, school staff and parent helpers which provided a range of basic healthy breakfast options and activities was welcomed by staff, pupils and parents". Preliminary results suggest promising benefits in food choice and school behaviour. This model also showed the highest demand with a reported reduction in general absenteeism and lateness.
Activities offered during the period of the breakfast clubs were also important and helped to motivate children out of the food area and turn their attention to informal learning. "These components along with a staff who complemented and supported each other and promoted quality social interaction with the children both at the breakfast table and during the activities created a motivating, friendly atmosphere of co-operation between adults and children."
There were also positive benefits to the children's food intake. "There was a decrease in the consumption of crisps and chocolate confectionery", there was also a decrease in the number of children having nothing for breakfast and the consumption of fruit increased. There was an increase in the consumption of pure fruit juice and there was a significant increase in children choosing high-fibre and ordinary breakfast cereals to high-sugar cereals.
Results seem to indicate that this model of breakfast club complements all the aspects of developing a health promoting school. It looks at different population groups within the school (including parental participation and developing community links) who work in partnership to achieve the same aims and objectives. It takes account of the atmosphere in which both adults and pupils can develop ensuring a positive and safe environment, which develops both the ethos and relationships of the school. It also complements and builds on what is being taught within the curriculum throughout the school.
Contact:
MICHAEL P BALLARD
Specialist Health Promotion Service
Tayside NHS Board
7 Dudhope Terrace
Dundee
DD3 6HG
Tel: 01382 228213
The Dundee Flower Show and Food Festival featured Dundee pupils creating their own salads as part of Healthy Dundee's Design A Salad Competition. The competition asked pupils to create a salad which could be used as a main meal using local produce. The finalists had to create their salads in the kitchen area of the Festival, in front of a large crowd.
Congratulations go to Chloe Hudson from P4 at Douglas Primary and Alan Muhiddin of P5 at St Ninian's Primary School who won the primary competitions. Chloe and Alan both created Summer Salads. Simon Constantino, Stephanie Higgins, Stephanie Gardiner and Sarah Lowden representing St John's High School won the secondary event with their Tempting Tuna Pitta Pockets.
Contact:
PRISCILLA WEBSTER
Specialist Health Promotion Service
Tayside NHS Board
7 Dudhope Terrace
Dundee
DD3 6HG
Tel: 01382 228213
St Thomas's recently won the first Bronze Award in Angus towards becoming a Health Promoting School. Head Teacher, Lesley Hood, said that it was in part due to the healthy tuckshop project that had been a catalyst for their work on health.
In their tuckshop they sell plums, apples, pears, raisins, carrots (which go like hot cakes!) jaffa cakes and milk. Below is an extract from the interview of Balhousie Primary School children by St Thomas's children when they had decided to take on a healthy tuckshop. Balhousie had been the inspiration for the project _ and, incidentally, have a milk and fruit only tuckshop.
Q. What are your favourite things?
A. Milk, bananas, oranges, raisins, biscuits, apples _ in that order!
Q. Do you sell orange juice?
A. No, it's too fiddly. (Later we learned that even good juice with no added
sugar sits on your teeth and can harm them.)
Q. How do you sell it? What does it look like?
A. We have big baskets for the goods and there's a blue plastic colander
for the apples as they are washed. We collect the milk from the fridge.
Q. Do you have to wear anything special?
A. No, but we wash our hands carefully when we are on the shop.
Q. Why did you start a healthy tuckshop?
A. So many people were getting rotten teeth. We were thinking about good
health.
Q. What's the healthiest product you sell?
A. We think it's milk and fruit.
Contact:
PRISCILLA WEBSTER
Specialist Health Promotion Service
Tayside NHS Board
7 Dudhope Terrace
Dundee
DD3 6HG
Tel: 01382 228213
As part of its commitment to involving parents in the school, the Girvan New Community School Cluster is participating in an innovative pilot project to develop health education resources for families at home. These resources will come in the form of a pack, which we hope will enhance what schools and families are already doing in relation to health by:
1. Letting adults know what information and support their children are getting at school in relation to health.
2. Giving adults important information so that they can more confidently discuss health matters at home.
3. Encouraging children to learn about health at home in the form of projects and games they can do by themselves.
4. Giving families ideas about fun things that they can do together to learn more about health.
The Health Board worked with parents and schools to put these packs together and will be piloting the packs between August and December 2001 in the following Cluster schools:
The packs will be distributed to families of Nursery, p1, p3, p5 and S2 pupils to use and review. They will cover:
These topics mirror the lessons that are being delivered in schools through the formal and informal health education curriculum. It is hoped, therefore that, rather than standing alone, the pack will reinforce and complement the good health promotion work that is happening in schools.
An evaluation will take place in December 2001 to assess whether the packs have been received well by families and to determine whether they have been beneficial to pupils' learning. Results of this evaluation will be available in the new year. The Health Planning and Promotion Department are leading the project.
For further information, contact:
APRIL BRYSON
Health Planning and Promotion Department
Ayrshire and Arran Health Board
Boswell House
Arthur Street
Ayr KA7 1QJ
Tel: 01292-885846