*Morning Running Club
 

Elementary Morning Running Club

 

Please consider being a volunteer. Click here to see the Running Club Volunteer Procedures. Email me if you can volunteer. Thanks!

When does it start? 3 days into school (if we have volunteers)

Who can join? K-5 students, parents, staff!

Why Running Club?
   A growing body of research indicates that exercise doesn't just build bodies; it builds brains! We believe that the club helps students hit the ground running when they set foot on campus.
A healthy child learns more than an out-of-shape one. A California Department of Education study shows a correlation between the number of state physical fitness standards children meet and how well they score on reading and math tests. 

    *In Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain, Dr. John Ratey explains how "aerobic exercise prepares the brain to learn, improves mood and attention, lowers stress and anxiety, helps stave off addiction, controls the sometimes tumultuous effects of hormonal changes, and guards against and even reverses some of the effects of aging on the brain."  Ratey gathered the evidence and makes the argument that aerobic exercise physically transforms the brain for peak performance and can even be the best defense against ADHD.  To keep the brain active and growing we need to keep our bodies moving.

What is the Running Club?
The running club is an opportunity for your students to get some great exercise, socialize and have some fun. If your students get to school from 7:48am-8:08am they can join the running club. The children will run around a track starting at the end of the ramp on the black top. Every time they run a whole lap they receive a running stick.
*Each day teachers collect and record the running sticks from the children on a chart. When the child has earned 100 sticks they are rewarded with a necklace and their first foot token. For every 100 laps they will get another foot token. Top two boy and girl runners from each grade are awarded at the end of the year.

End of the year Awards:

Top Runner: $40 Gift Card, top runner certificate and honors! Bragging rights for all eternity!
Top 4 School Runners: 20$ Gift Card
Top 2 male runners & top 2 female runners in each grade: Certificate, a 'BIG' foot necklace token & free meal at High Dive!
  
*100 mile crew- Every runner who has ran 100 miles/10 feet are part of the 100 mile crew. They will be recognized with a special '100' necklace token at the end of the year to recognize their commitment & achievement.


When does it start/end? starts 3 days from first day of school (if volunteers available), ending two weeks before last day of school.

General Rules:
Things You Can Do:
Run or walk with friends
Get a lot of exercise
Talk while walking
Have fun!!!!
Things You Can Not Do:
No Cutting cones
No stealing sticks or double dipping (Trying to get multiple sticks for one lap. Teacher will be notified.)
No physical contact. (suspension from running club) No playing tag.
Please go over these rules before Running Club starts. Letting the students know the expectations will help avoid problems.

If they do not want to run they must stand in line and wait for their teacher.

 If you have any questions please feel free to contact me, or the amazing running club parent volunteers.  

Thanks, Brian Nassif bnassif@aeacs.org