Jacksonville, FL (PRWEB) June 01, 2015
Northeast Florida area students are getting a lot more active thanks to a sponsorship of GoNoodle by St. Vincent’s Healthcare and Florida Blue. St. Vincent’s recently renewed their sponsorship and will continue to provide GoNoodle to Northeast Florida students through 2019. An online suite of interactive physical activity breaks; GoNoodle turns classrooms into active spaces, delivering short-bursts of physical activity that students can perform next to their desks. Currently available to more than 4,500 Duval, Baker, Nassau, St. Johns and Clay County teachers and 99,000 local students, GoNoodle delivered more than 1.3 million student minutes of physical activity in April 2015 alone. Now in recognition of one of the most active schools in the area, Chets Creek Elementary is being awarded a special visit with USA Track and Field Champion Alexis Love as she leads all 1,300 students in playing GoNoodle’s Run With Us! at a school-wide assembly today.
As part of a contest, Chets Creek Elementary generated over 22,000 minutes of physical activity during more than 270 physical activity breaks between April 13 and May 8, 2015. During this contest period, 57% of Chets Creek Elementary teachers used GoNoodle in their classroom to get students running, jumping, dancing, stretching and deep-breathing while integrating core learning topics like math and language arts.
With childhood obesity continuing as a leading health issue that affects kids, inserting physical activity during the school day has become more important than ever. According to the CDC, only one-quarter of youth meet the current recommendation of at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per day. GoNoodle is helping Northeast area students earn those important minutes through entertaining experiences that feature high-energy dance music, fitness routines, virtual field trips and physical challenges. One of GoNoodle’s most popular activities is Run With Us!, featuring Olympians and Olympic caliber athletes that lead students in virtual track and field events built in collaboration with the USA Track and Field Foundation.
“We are proud to partner with Florida Blue, CSX, Duval County Public Schools and HealthTeacher to help kids live healthier lives by providing the only health education curriculum available in public schools in Northeast Florida. The response to the GoNoodle program in elementary schools has been fantastic: teachers believe that GoNoodle improves student behavior, focus and achievement in the classroom, and students have fun while getting exercise,” says Jane R. Lanier, CFRE, President of the St. Vincent’s Foundation.
“GoNoodle is such a great asset for the kids! It is so much easier to work out and be active when it is fun. I am excited to be a part of what GoNoodle is doing for the kids to help improve student health while learning at the same time. Track and Field has changed my life in so many ways! It has taught me how to persevere and to be dedicated on and off the track. I cannot wait to share my experience with these students!” says 2016 Olympic hopeful, Alexis Love.
Research proves that these short bursts of physical activity have not only positive health benefits, but also improve student engagement, behavior and academic success. In addition to the track and field game, GoNoodle includes dancing, stretching, and even calming exercises, along with games that incorporate spelling, vocabulary and math with physical activity. Teachers can learn more about GoNoodle by visiting http://www.gonoodle.com.
About St. Vincent’s HealthCare
St. Vincent’s HealthCare includes: St. Vincent’s Riverside, St. Vincent’s Southside, St. Vincent’s Clay County, St. Catherine Labouré Manor, St. Vincent’s Primary Care, Consolidated Laboratories, St. Vincent’s Ambulance Service, Seton Pharmacies and Consolidated Pharmacies. St. Vincent’s Medical Center was founded by the Daughters of Charity in 1916 to provide health services to the sick and the poor of North Florida. St. Luke’s Hospital, now St. Vincent’s Southside, was founded in 1873 by three women who saw the need for medical care in the community. It stands as Florida’s oldest private hospital. St. Vincent’s HealthCare is a member of Ascension Health, the nation’s largest Catholic and nonprofit health system with 153,000 associates serving in 131 acute care hospitals.
About Florida Blue
Florida Blue, Florida’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield company, is a leader in Florida’s health care industry. Driven by its mission to help people and communities achieve better health, Florida Blue has more than 4 million health care members across the state. An additional 15.5 million people in 16 states are served through its affiliated companies. Florida Blue is one of Florida’s largest employers with approximately 10,500 of its nearly 11,500 employees located in the state. Florida Blue is a not-for-profit, policyholder-owned, tax-paying mutual company. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., it is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. For more information, visit http://www.floridablue.com.
About GoNoodle
GoNoodle is an online resource for elementary teachers to improve student engagement and youth health through physical activity breaks. Helping to increase energy and focus while improving classroom behavior, GoNoodle's activities can be played on an interactive whiteboard, projector or computer screen. Since its launch in August 2013, over 6.5 million kids have played GoNoodle physical activity breaks. Teachers can sign up for free at gonoodle.com.
Media Contacts
For GoNoodle:
Suki Mulberg Altamirano
suki(at)lexingtonpr(dot)com
615-649-4900