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Generating Homeroom Spirit

Looking for Kickoff ideas?  Check out how one Pennsylvania school generated excitement for Fuel Up to Play 60.

To kickoff Fuel Up To Play 60 activities for the 2011-12 school year, Park Forest Middle School held a Homeroom Spirit Door Decorating Contest.

With guidance from school nurse Jean Sylvia, food service manager Chris Meckley, Penn State nutrition graduate student Carrie Lyons, and Fuel Up to Play 60 Program Advisor Poppy Gatto, the 12-member student team researched and created scripts to share MyPlate healthy eating tips. Using the in-school television station, the team members presented their MyPlate tips “live” to entire student body during the morning announcements.

MyPlate tips set the stage for the main kickoff event:  a school-wide homeroom spirit door-decorating contest.  To create excitement for the contest, the team showcased photos of four winning doors from the previous year’ contest. The team also distributed contest guidelines.

The Fuel Up to Play 60 student team students served as escorts and guided the judges who scored the doors using the grading criteria.  Judges included the school district athletic director, two school board members, the administrative director of student services, a nutrition educator, and a representative from Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association.

Using Fuel Up to Play 60 funds, the student team purchased healthy eating and physical activity prizes for the three winning doors at each grade level. Here’s what the winning homerooms received for their efforts.

First Prize: food supplies to make individual yogurt parfaits and a hard foam bowling set Second Prize: cheese sticks and nectarines, and an over-the-door Nerf basketball
Third Prize:  cheese sticks and nectarines, and a balance dome

Check out the award-winning doors.

Park Forest Middle School is located in State College, Pa.