Garden City’s Memorial Elementary School Sees Improved Academics, Well-Being with Building Healthy Communities
Lindsay Knake
| 4 min read
Lindsay Knake is a brand journalist for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.
With more equipment at recess and a class focused on student well-being, Memorial Elementary School in Garden City is seeing a holistic improvement in student academics and well-being.
The elementary school has about 400 first- and second-grade students and 55 teachers and staff members. The school is part of the Building Healthy Communities program. Building Healthy Communities is a Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan program to support children’s health by preventing chronic diseases, reducing obesity and improving mental health and well-being. Building Healthy Communities educates students through lessons in the classroom and gymnasium while creating a school environment that makes the healthy choice the easy choice.
Through the program, Memorial Elementary School received a recess cart and equipment to encourage active play, along with new physical education equipment and a comprehensive curriculum. The students have become more active, which helps them become a little calmer in the classroom, said Principal Jill Larkins. In physical education class and at recess, the students are learning to socialize, share and compromise.
“It's giving them an outlet and teaching them how to play and be active. And that's the biggest thing. Our referrals for behavior during our two-hour lunch window have gone down significantly since Building Healthy Communities has been in our building,” Larkins said. “It's eye-hand coordination, it's teamwork, and they love it. It's just, it's so much fun. And you never not hear fun laughter coming from that gym. And that's refreshing for us because that's what they need.”
Through the program, there are daily announcements with health tips and weekly newsletters for parents. Attendance and math and reading test scores have improved since implementing the program.
“Kids are eating better, they're getting more sleep, they're outside, and especially now that the weather's broken, they'll be outside even more,” she said. “I just think it's a great whole child program.”
Healthy Choices class
Memorial Elementary also has a weekly class for all students called Healthy Choices. The students take what they learn in the class into their other classes and even to their homes.
“These are some of the kiddos that came out of the COVID era, and they were struggling to get through and learn how to interact with other people. But with Building Healthy Communities incorporated in our Healthy Choices class, they've been doing a great job of learning how to talk, communicate, share and manage social interactions very positively,” Larkins said.
Darleen Boland is in her third year of teaching the Healthy Choices class, which entails social emotional learning, making nutritious food choices and making healthy choices in friendships and relationships.
In the class, the students practice with examples such as “what would you do if you saw someone making a not-so-great choice? What would you do in that situation and how would you feel?” They also practice making healthy snacks such as a parfait with yogurt and granola.
“This class is a very important class that I wish my own children had years ago,” Boland said.
Teachers and staff also benefit from Building Healthy Communities. The mental health tips remind the staff to take time for themselves, breathe and eat nutritious foods.
“It’s been a very positive program for our school,” Larkins said. “It's really brought health and wellness to the forefront, just not only for the kids, but for us as adults. It's a good reminder for us that we have to do as we're saying.”
Building Healthy Communities has reached more than 1,400 Michigan schools and more than 615,000 students since 2009. All public, charter and private nonprofit schools in the state are encouraged to review the full Building Healthy Communities program descriptions and eligibility information at bcbsm.com/buildhealth. Applications are due June 1 and can be submitted at buildinghealthycommunities.arewehealthy.com.
Image: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
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