The challenge will begin on March, 1st 2010 and end on April 11, 2010.
Participants
6th, 7th, and 8th grade public school classrooms in the counties of Rockland, Westchester, Bronx, New York, Richmond, Kings, Queens, Nassau and Suffolk are invited to participate in the 2010 First Lady's Challenge. Each classrooms is a team and competes against other teams in their county. These teams are eligible for the First Lady's prizes of a farm visit and a lunch with the Governor, First Lady and surprise guest.
If your school is located outside of the counties listed above, you can participate in the Healthy Steps to Albany: School's Challenge. This challenge allows 6th, 7th, and 8th grade classrooms from around the state to compete against each other. Schools sign up online and use the online database but are NOT eligible for the First Lady's Prizes. Classroom progress and activities can be featured on our website and each classroom that completes the challenge will receive a certificate of recognition.
Timeline
Late November: Check your inbox for the First Lady's Challenge invitation.
December: Schools pick a teacher to be their School Captain. The School Captain registers their school online.
Community organizations register online and receive information about how they can volunteer resources to support a school.
January: Schools continue to register. School Captains add their school's teams to the database.
February: School Captains continue to register teams.
March: Contest begins with a Kick-Off celebration.
April: Schools organize healthy living events. Program ends.
May: First Lady's Prizes are administered.
The following tools are needed to participate in the challenge.
First Lady's Challenge Student Worksheet or School's Challenge Worksheet
Student Participation Slip
Team rules:
- a student cannot be on more than one team.
- a teacher can have multiple teams.
- a team must have at least 15 students and no more than 30.
- Students must be in the 6th, 7th, or 8th grade.
How do you accumulate steps?
In-class exercise and outside of gym activities count toward the challenge.
Eligible activities:
- walk/bike/skateboard to school
- In-classroom activity
- After school activity
- Family activity
- Weekend Activity
- whole fruits or vegetables
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NOT eligible activities:
- School-day gym class
- Mandatory lunch time or after school activity
- Activities when absent from school
- Routine pedometer steps (such as walking in between classes).
-a slice of apple pie
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Teachers are encouraged to find creative ways to add more steps to the school day. Some teachers take a 15 minute break and allow their students to dance by their desks. Others hold relay races. Classrooms that find creative ways to add steps to their school day can post a video on our website. Contact your school's School Captain to learn more information.
How do you count steps?
Steps are calculated using the activity conversion chart or online conversion calculator.
Students are responsible for keeping track of their daily activities by filling out the Student Activity Worksheet. Teachers help students convert minutes of activity into steps. Every week the teacher collects the Student Activity Worksheets and is responsible for tallying the team's total and reporting the total to the School Captain. The School Captain must enter the team's steps by the Wednesday of the following week.
Can I use a pedometer?
Yes, but only to count the steps of an activity such as walking your dog, cooking a meal or playing outside. Ordinary steps, such as the steps you take switching classrooms between periods, does not count toward the challenge.
What happens during Spring Recess?
The contest continues during spring recess. If your school recess spans over two weeks you may enter both weeks total into the week 6 entry space.
What happens if a student drops out or joins my class?
Notify the School Captain so that they can adjust the amount of players on your team.
Who wins the First Lady's challenge?
One 6th grade class, one 7th grade class, and one 8th grade class from each county will be deemed the winner of this contest. The winning classes are those that record the most steps within the six-week time period.
Prizes.
The winning 6th, 7th, and 8th grade classroom from each county wins a lunch with the Governor, First Lady and a special guest as well as a trip to a farm to learn about whole foods and agriculture.
Trips include transportation that is booked by the Healthy Steps to Albany program, admission, and lunch. Number of participants is limited to the number of registered students plus the classroom teacher, School Captain and a chaperone.
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