The Columbus Research Foundation ‘Be Well Columbus Georgia Project’, made possible by a grant from the Microsoft Corporation Be Well Fund, kicked off January 17, 2009 and will come to a close April 24, 2009. It was offered on a voluntary basis to all twelve middle schools of which ten chose to participate. The district has 3500 seventh graders enrolled and about 900 signed up along with 100 teachers.
The project is a competition among homerooms and hinges on an interactive website, www.walktomicrosoft.com. Students log daily physical activity in the form of steps or miles by using a pedometer and log their daily food intake. They are taking a virtual walk across the country with their logged miles and end at the Microsoft Corporation in Bellevue, Washington. Each participating student and the teacher of the first homeroom to collectively accrue 2977 miles and reach Microsoft will win a Wii, Wii Fit and a game of their choice. Other incentive prizes, including new tennis shoes, are being awarded as they reach designated mile markers.
Students, parents and teachers say that they have become much more aware of junk food and idle lifestyles since they began the Be Well Project. Students are motivated by their pedometers to log more steps and have learned to read food labels. Many are reporting actual weight loss. Others report they have insisted that their families join them in daily walks or gym memberships.
The competition has heated up as the end date approaches. One homeroom moved from being ranked number eight to number three in less than two weeks. Keep checking this blog for updates – we will recognize the winning class and their teacher!
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