Healthy Living with Arianne Jones
Arianne Jones talked about three components of Healthy Living:- Nutrition (and Hydration)
- Sleep
- Exercise
We explored each of these topics and discussed the importance of good mental health then celebrated “Hats On For Mental Health Day” on May 3. We also touched on body image and saying no to smoking and alcohol.
We are running a little behind in our Classroom Champions schedule, but I feel it is important to cover the Healthy Living topic well, as we cover one third, of the Grade Three Alberta Health Curriculum, during our discussions.
Nutrition and Hydration
Arianne Jones currently is studying nutrition. She knows a lot about food. She talked about nature providing clues about food quality. For example: a walnut looks like a brain, and it makes brain function better when eaten. My students really liked that tidbit of information. Most had tried pecans but not all were sure if they had tried a walnut.
Arianne encouraged the students to stay hydrated by drinking water or vegetable juice. All the students in my room are encouraged to bring water bottles to school so drinking water was easy advice to follow. They weren’t so sure about the vegetable juice. They usually quench their thirst with fruit juice.
Most parents discourage students in my class from drinking soda and colas. The students seemed very aware of the high amounts of sugar in soft drinks but they were dumbfounded when they learned fruit juice contains just as much sugar. They was certainly new information for them.
We discussed food groups and determined which healthy foods belonged to each category. We made a chart, “What’s On Your Plate?’ that reflects our understanding.
Sleep
Most of my students are struggling to sleep well at this time of year. We have exceptionally long days, the sun currently rises at 6:00 am and sets at 8:30 pm. As each day passes, we gain more daylight. By June 21, we will be able to watch the sunset at midnight and watch the it rise shortly after 4:00 am. With this in mind we talked about blackout blinds which are expensive, or covering the window with aluminum, which is much cheaper.
We discussed why bedtime routines are important. A cool, dark room, without blue light from electronics makes sleeping soundly possible. We talked about the way sugary snacks before bedtime can cause blood sugar to spike while sleeping causing individuals to wake in the middle of the night.
Students experience more anxiety now, then when I went to school fifty years ago. We spent time discussing how to relax and why relaxation is so important. Most of the students in my class agreed that reading and playing in nature were great ways to relax. The wilderness is literally outside our doorsteps. Quadding, camping and hiking are always available in our Grande Prairie forests. Students are fortunate to see bear, cougar, lynx, moose, deer and elk in their back yards throughout the seasons.
Exercise
Arianne challenged us to get 10 minutes of fun, physical exercise each day, for one month. We started this challenge at the beginning of May and hope to show Arianne a nearly completed chart, when she comes to visit our class on May 25. As I type, we have 18 more sleeps before her visit. We are confident we can surpass her challenge by exercising for at least 30 minutes each day, which is a curriculum requirement in Alberta. Our class is so excited that Arianne is coming to visit us. Wow! Just 15 sleeps to go!
Curriculum Covered
Healthy living is a great topic of study because it meshes so nicely with our grade three Health Program of Studies, as you can see from the student learner objectives listed below:
Grade 3 - Wellness Choices
Students will make responsible and informed choices to maintain health and to promote safety for self and others. 
Personal Health
Students will:
W-3.1 analyze the factors that affect choices for physical activity; e.g., the impact of technology/media
W-3.2 improve and practise positive health habits; e.g., lifting and carrying book bags/backpacks, maintaining good posture 
W-3.3 examine that individuals grow through similar stages of development at different rates and at different times
W-3.4 recognize factors that influence unique body characteristics; e.g., genetics, body type, environment
W-3.5 apply guidelines from Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating to individual nutritional circumstances; e.g., active children eat/drink more
W-3.6 describe the importance of decision-making and refusal skills when offered inappropriate substances; e.g., drugs, tobacco, allergens
We loved investigating this topic and are planning our class visit from Arianne. It is so exciting. Classroom Champions is amazing and we know we are fortunate to see Arianne in person. We cannot wait to tell you how the visit goes. Stay tuned …..
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