Our 9 Programs Improve the Health of Kids.

Our programs serve school districts throughout Lane County with PE programming to assist classroom teachers and students in the PE classroom. Our Trainers have experience in a variety of physical modalities supporting classroom teachers in PE classes in elementary schools. We work with organizations that don’t offer physical activities. We have 9 educational fitness programs and continue to build our digital curriculum catalog that may be used in the classroom, or at home for distance learning. Healthy Moves trainers aim to provide kids with exceptional physical education skills in a supportive PE environment. We “bring movement, fitness and Fun to youth in our communities.”

This brings movement, fitness and fun to elementary students through a nine-week trainer-in-residence program. Due to school budget cuts in the area, many physical education programs have been eliminated, which leaves classroom teachers, many of whom have no specialized PE training, to lead PE classes.

Healthy Moves fills the gap by working with teachers and their students to demonstrate fitness activities and provide a model that the teacher can use for PE classes. Healthy Moves provides fitness formats that can be used by any teachers of grades one through five. The approach reduces the teacher’s planning time for physical education, and it provides students with fitness activities that they enjoy and skills that they can use in and out of the classroom.

The students also develop the physical skills that are required in state teaching standards, and these activities help students toward the 60 minutes-a-day of active play with elevated heart rates that are recommended by the American Medical Association.

The Trainers: Healthy Moves’ trainers are community fitness instructors who come from a range of physical activity backgrounds: certified and licensed fitness trainers and consultants, athletic trainers, retired PE teachers, former coaches or athletes, community recreation instructors, and University of Oregon students from the Human Physiology department. Trainers are recruited and screened by the Healthy Moves director and board members. Prospective trainers complete an application, interview for inclusion in the program, complete school district volunteer forms, pass the criminal background checks required by the schools, and meet with the Healthy Moves director and the teachers prior to the start of the nine-week program.

The Basics: This is a program for elementary schools that need aid in the PE classroom. Healthy Moves partners with these schools to provide the necessary “trainers” to help the teacher during gym time and facilitate movement with the kids. Each Trainer is focused in specialized physical movement skills including (but not limited to): dance, tumbling, circuit training, sport skills (track, soccer, basketball, baseball, volleyball, etc), frisbee, martial arts, yoga, stretching, and juggling. Trainers are selected based on their positive attitudes and exceptional abilities in their respective sport – and for their love to teach!

In Your Community: Healthy Moves will offer an extensive 2 or 3 week professional development program to classroom teachers at the elementary school level in Lane County. The Trainers will each teach their specialized skill to the teacher during PE class, while working along with students. This is a program that will enlighten students and teachers alike to try new movements during gym class time that elevate mind/body coordination – while having fun! It is an opportunity for students to step out of their comfort zone and learn from their peers, while being taught a new set of skills. This encourages the kids to interact with each other, it builds their confidence, increases their mental/physical stamina, and builds physical literacy that they can use throughout their lifetime. Please see our Healthy Facts page for more information on how physical activity stimulates kids for a lifetime of mind and body fitness.

Overview: This is a 30-minute activity program that is done before school on four mornings per week for a minimum of 6 weeks up to the entire elementary school year. A variety of physical activities includes a warm-up, cardiovascular activities, games, and a cool down/yoga stretch. Activities are adapted to be appropriate for each grade. This program is designed to stimulate physical activity for kids in grades k-to-six, and this has the added benefit of preparing them to be able to focus better in the classroom.

Staffing: This program will be done in conjunction with schools that have the Trainer-in-Residence program at their school. Healthy Moves will provide professional trainers for a school year, and then for the program to continue at the school, Healthy Moves will train volunteers (preferably parents or it could be teaching staff) to continue the Jump Start program. Healthy Moves will train these persons in a seven-week training much like the Trainer-in-Residence program. Healthy Moves will do check-ins to provide guidance, answer any questions, and to make sure that the program is going smoothly.

If volunteers are not available to conduct this program for the school year, Healthy Moves can provide a trainer as a contracted service to the school.

Space accommodation: All that is needed in terms of facilities and equipment is a large open space for children to move.

PE Recess Program is designed to assist elementary schools in achieving
more minutes towards the Oregon Department of Education mandate of 150 minutes of PE per week. This is an increase from 60 minutes per week. In order to have PE Recess activity minutes count toward the ODE mandate all students must participate in the program.

PE Recess is 15 minutes long and can be offered 2-5 times a week, usually
during the morning recess time. PE Recess is organized with age-appropriate activities, separating into two age groups: k-2nd grades and 3rd-5th grades.

The program is designed to offer 2-3 days of motor skills and 2-3 days of
hand eye skills. For example: M, W, F can be motor skills and T, Th can be hand eye skills.

Teachers and administrators can also be trained to continue the program once Healthy Moves residency is complete.

Prep Time PE gives teachers back their prep time while keeping students active. As full-time PE teaching positions decline, increasing pressure is put on classroom teachers to teach PE to their students. This not only requires additional prep but often takes away the time teachers need to prep during the school day. Additionally, in-service teacher training during the school day requires schools to hire substitute teachers. This program gives teachers back their time and eases the financial burden on schools to hire substitutes while helping students reach 150 minutes of moderate/vigorous physical activity each week.

Healthy Assessments assist schools in completing mandatory fitness assessments for every student. The Oregon Department of Education requires students in grades 3-5 to participate in fitness assessments and has used Healthy Moves assessment procedures as a model for others in our state. With the decline in PE teachers and an increase in class sizes, it can be more than a challenge for classroom teachers to meet this requirement. Healthy Moves’ team of trainers and staff help meet this challenge. While assessments are a part of our residencies, not every school can make that commitment. This program works with schools’ schedules to make sure pre- and post-assessments are completed and students are set up for success.

In an effort to promote opportunities for physical activity among all youth in our community, Healthy Moves will provide professional planning and guidance to schools and community organizations to help develop and operate child physical activity programs. At this time, we are focused on the physical activity needs of children in kindergarten through 8th grade.

Our professionally-trained and licensed staff are available to offer support to community and school groups at three levels:

  • Develop and train organization members on physical activity curriculum that groups will conduct themselves;
  • Develop and conduct ongoing child physical activity curriculum for organizations; or
  • Develop and conduct initial child physical activity curriculum, and train organization members to conduct activities on their own with the assistance of ongoing consultation from Healthy Moves staff.

Educational Fitness Videos for teachers & parents who teach distance learning in schools & small spaces.

Looking for online educational fitness/PE classes for kids? Contact Denise to find out more about our 30-40 minute classes offered weekly.