capstone project ,Rebecca

1. Eat Right, Play Hard, and Feel Good! Rebecca Bridenthal Kent State University

2. Introduction Eat Right, Play Hard, And Feel Goodwas a health promotion teaching project presented to youth ages 5-12 years of age at the Medina County YMCA on June 15, 2010 from 2:30pm-3:15pm.

3. Health Promotion Childhood obesity is at epidemic proportions in the United States. In Medina County, 13.3 percent of third-graders were overweight in a survey in the 2004-2005 school year(Ohio Department of Health, 2007).

4. Healthy People 2010 Nutrition and overweight, physical activity and fitness are Healthy People 2010 focus areas under the overarching goal to increase quality and years of healthy life (Healthy People 2010).

5. Behavioral/Learning Objectives Participants will learn the anatomy of the MyPyramid, a nutritional diagram created by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (USDA, 2010). Participants will learn how foods are divided into food groups. Participants will know how many servings are recommended in each food group and know what a serving size is for each of the different food groups. Participants will correctly sort foods into the appropriate food groups. Participants will identify why physical activity is important for growth and health. They will also identify how much physical activity is recommended daily. They will participate in physical activity during the presentation.

6. Focus on Nutrition & Physical Activity

7. The presentation began with an introduction, lecture and discussion of the anatomy of the MyPyramid diagram, food groups, and serving sizes for each food group.

8. In the Gym

9. After lecture and discussion, a food pyramid relay game was played. Two lines of participants were formed. The first child in line picked a card with a picture of a food on it. The child ran across the gym to the pyramid and placed it in the correct food group and ran back to the line, sending the next child running across the gym with the next card. Whichever group ran out of cards first, won.

10. Physical activity was incorporated into the relay game. Approximately 180 steps were taken with each run across the gymnasium. An average of 900 steps per child were taken at the end of the relay. Did you know in a small McDonald’s French fry there are approximately 25-30 fries which means you would have to take 4,500 steps or 75 trips across the gym to use the energy consumed?

11. With an 86% correct sorting rate, further review and discussion of the food groups followed the relay game.

12. A short lecture and discussion of the importance of physical activity and the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity daily followed the food relay game. Physical activity charades, a game, was played. The game explored different physical activities that could be performed.

13. After the games, the participants were provided a healthy snack of low-fat cheese, pretzels, applesauce, and water. Discussion and review of the 5 food groups, and reviewing what was learned occurred. The participants decided that their favorite part of the presentation was physical activity charades.

14. References Healthy People 2010, (2010). Retrieved from: http://www.healthypeople.gov/ Ohio Department of Health. 2008. Healthy Ohio Community Profiles. Retrieved from: http://www.healthyohioprogram.org/comprofiles/medina.pdf USDA, 2010. MyPyramid. Retrieved from: http://www.mypyramid.gov/