Potential Upcoming Events (we are always in the planning stages, so stay tuned)

• April- Salad Potluck, Book Club (The Penderwicks),  Flower Hunt. Anxious Generation Book Talk
• May- National Bike & Roll to School Day May 6th, Line Dancing @ Community Center Monday's @ 6:30pm

1. Ongoing-Hearing and Vision Screening for staff; blood pressures.  Both available upon request. 
2. Massage Chairs-Located at each site to encourage relaxation and relieve stress during lunchbreaks.
3. Healthy Snacks in Staff Lounges-available to staff for purchase
4. Equipment-We also have a few Wii exercise videos, exercise balls, bands and mats.  Please contact Michelle MacPherson if you would like to check out any of these items
5. Employee Assistance Program:  All of our full and part time employees are eligible to participate in an Employee Assistance Program that is available at https://www.workhealthlife.com/ .  When you go to the website, search for our workplace under "Lewiston Altura ISD 857".  This is only available for our employees and not other family members.  This is a great resource that includes 1:1 confidential counseling as well as a wide variety of resources on many work, health and life topics such as nutrition, finances, stress, trauma and more.  There is also a virtual fitness program.  Be assured that our office does not receive any information about who or how many staff access or utilize the site's resources. 
6. Quiet Rooms - We now have rooms at the elementary and high school buildings whose primary purpose is to be used by staff who are breast pumping and need a private space.  These items were purchased with grants received from Winona County SHIP funds.  These 2 rooms each have a massage chair, small refrigerator, a radio/CD player, and lockers.  These rooms will also house an exercise ball and mat.  We will be adding things to the space, suggestions welcome to add to the space to help you decompress!When these rooms are not in use by staff for this purpose, it is open to all staff to use as a "quiet" room for staff to decompress and relax! Look at items added over time.. 

Staff Resources
Walking Podcasts Available for Classroom Use
(Email sent from Michelle MacPherson 2/3 with details)
Just as a reminder, we have 30 Walking Classroom kits that teachers can check out to use with their students.  The kits have over 160 different podcasts that focus on a variety of Language Arts, Social Studies and Science standards-based lessons that are geared for 3rd-8th Grade Students.  

The Walking Classroom program is simple: Students take brisk 20-minute walks as a class while listening to the same kid-friendly educational podcast episode that comes preloaded on their WalkKit (audio player). Each podcast episode begins with a brief health literacy message and includes a character value woven throughout the narrative. The lesson plans and quizzes in the included Digital Program Guide help educators effectively discuss and review the podcast material.

This program was recently featured on the Kelly Clarkson Show.  Here is a link to that video:
Transform Health & Learning with The Walking Classroom | Alliance for a Healthier Generation
If you would like to incorporate some activity into your classroom, let me know!  I have attached the index of podcasts and more information.  

Stress Reduction
Headspace for Educators-Free Website with Resources Meditate

Healthy Eating

1.  Dietary Consumption Awareness
     If you would like to know how many calories are recommended for your weight/height/activity level/goals...you can refer to one of the following websites: 

http://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html 
http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm 
http://www.healthycalculators.com/calories-intake-requirement.php 

2.  "Real Food" 
Is eating healthier one of your New Year's Resolutions?  Check out www.100daysofrealfood.com 
     According to Lisa Leake- These are the Benefits of Taking the 10-Day RealPledge: A first-hand, eye opening experience of how to identify the real food in our processed food world.

• At least one improved health benefit such as having more energy, losing weight, improving regularity, or just feeling healthier overall. 

• The realization that some of those pre-packaged processed “food-like substances” don’t even taste that good compared to real food. 

• The opportunity to teach your children (if you have them), by example, the healthiest way to eat and enjoy the food mother nature has given us. 

• The ability to continue on with your life however you chose, but with the new knowledge of how and why to avoid processed foods. Hopefully your 10-day experience will convince you to consider making at least a few changes for life.