Focusing on heart health in District 13

Parents want their children to live long, healthy lives. That was quite evident at Howell Road School recently, where the PTA hosted Healthy Heart Week from Feb. 13-17.

Sangeeta Pandit, who coordinated the event for the PTA, said this has been an annual program at the school for at least five years. Healthy Heart Week began on Feb. 13 with a blood drive. On Tuesday, staff members and parent volunteers constructed an artery on the gymnasium stage which students would travel through later in the week to learn about heart health.

To encourage regular exercise and fitness, students participated in Jump Rope for Heart and Hoops for Heart, to benefit the American Heart Association. There was a tobacco prevention workshop for fifth and sixth graders, and a nutrition program for students in grades K-4.

“More and more children are dying because of obesity,” Pandit said.

The giant artery on the stage was one of the highlights for the children. Art teacher Karen Martorana helped build it, using red tablecloths to line the walls and make children feel as if they were actually traveling through their body’s circulatory system.

As students traveled through the artery, the path got smaller and smaller, showing them how the fatty foods they eat can affect blood circulation. Nicole Ellerbe, a nurse from North Shore-LIJ, gave students health tips along the way while the sound of a heart beat echoed throughout the chamber.

Martorana said the purpose of the giant artery is to teach students to understand the importance of eating right and regular exercise, and what affects it can have on their body if they don’t. “They don’t realize what goes on inside their bodies at this point in their lives,” she said.

Physical education teacher Kevin Olsen said that every student participated in Jump Rope for Heart, Hoops for Heart, or both. He emphasized how money raised by those event benefits the American Heart Association.

Pandit said she hopes students got a well-rounded education about the importance of treating their bodies the right way. “My goal for the week,” she said, “is for them to remember this for a lifetime and live a healthy lifestyle.”

Jumping for healthy hearts at Dever

Students at the James A. Dever School celebrated Valentine’s Day by learning how to keep their hearts healthy. Children in grades K-4 participated in Jump Rope for Heart and fifth and sixth graders took part in Hoops for Heart.

In the past five years, the school has raised more than $50,000 for the American Heart Association, according to physical education Carrie Lundgren.