Military(Care(Packages:(Bennett(Collection(Drive!

!!!!The Bennett student council is organizing a school-wide collection event in order to make care packages for one of our fellow StuCo representative’s father and his troop. Our military members work tirelessly to defend our freedoms, and this is our way of letting them know how grateful Bennett Bears are for all that they do. We would greatly appreciate your help with making this project a success. Each grade level will contribute various items needed by our soldiers: Kindergarten – Adult-Sized Boot Socks: olive, tan, or black 1st Grade – Short-Sleeved Undershirts: olive green 2nd Grade – Toiletries: toothpaste, toothbrushes, and dental floss 3rd Grade – Toiletries: deodorant and body wash (no pump dispensers) 4th Grade – Single-Serving, Non-Perishable Snacks 5th Grade – Flavored Drink Powders: boxes of individual packets The collection period will take place for next two weeks: February 9-13 and 16-20. If you would like to help with this service project, please send in any donations to your child’s homeroom teacher by Friday, February 20th. In addition, if your child would like to create a card of appreciation to be included in the care packages, that would be wonderful. Please make the card(s) positive and uplifting. Your participation with this worthwhile project is greatly appreciated!

DATES TO REMEMBER

Tuesday, Feb. 10thTaste It Tuesday

Wednesday, Feb. 11thProgress Reports

Thursday, Feb. 12thArt Reception at Central Office

Friday, Feb. 13thValentine’s Day Parties @ 1:45

Monday, Feb. 16thNo School for Students

Tuesday, Feb. 17th5th Grade Science Exhibit

Wednesday, Feb. 18th• Fun Run Pep Rally @ 2:00 p.m.• Dress Like a Rock STAR

Friday, Feb. 20th• Paw Stamps before school• STUCO Care Package items

due• Friday Live @ 2:15

• Superintendent Dr. McDaniel will attend Friday Live!

Friday, Feb. 27thFun Run• 9:00 K-1• 10:00 2-3• 11:00 4-5

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

STAFF BIRTHDAYS

Mrs. Covey, 1st Grade - Feb. 16th

Mrs. Sullivan, 2nd Grade - Feb. 19th

Mrs. Fanning, 1st Grade - Feb. 23rd

Mrs. Barnes, SPED - Feb. 25th

Mrs. Reinhard, Kindergarten - Mar. 3rd

Mrs. Higgins, 5th Grade - Mar. 5th

Mrs. Sanders, Secretary - Mar. 13th

PAGE 2

Please remember that dogs are not allowed on school grounds

at anytime.

PAGE 3

PAGE 4

Vol. 4, Issue 6 February 2015

Upcoming Events Feb 10th Taste it Tuesday.

Feb 27th Fun Run Boosterthon & Fill The Bus begins

Know Your Family History My Family Health Portrait is an online tool that allows you to make a family tree to keep track of your family’s health history. It takes the average person about 15-20 minutes to construct a simple family tree through the website. Once you enter your health history you can share the tree with other members of your family to get a better picture of your family’s health. Knowing your family history is important because it can help your doctor determine if it is necessary to screen you for certain illnesses. Also, understanding your family history helps you and your doctor design a wellness plan to improve your quality of life and life expectancy.

Check Out My Family Health Portrait: https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/FHH/html/index.html

My Family Health History. HHS. Retrieved from https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/FHH/html/fhh.html?action=create

Articles in this newsletter were created for the Centers of Excellence Project funded through private donations.

Healthy Zone School Program Sponsors

“90%%of%women%have%one%or%more%risk%factors%for%developing%heart%

disease.”%!American*Heart*Association*

%%

The Importance of Being Active

Planning Healthy Meals Families are constantly on the go with work and afterschool activities which makes it difficult to find time to prepare dinner. It can also be hard to make low cost nutritious meals in a short amount of time. Recently, the USDA developed a tool to overcome these barriers and help families plan healthy meals. The “What’s Cooking? USDA Mixing Bowl” is an online resource that allows you to find recipes based on dietary needs, cost, food groups, calories, and much more. Once you find a recipe your family enjoys save it to the “My Cookbook” section for easy access. In the near future, the website will offer a menu building feature to let you design healthy entrees and generate shopping lists.

What’s Cooking USDA Mixing Bowl. USDA. Retrieved from http://www.whatscooking.fns.usda.gov/

Many Americans have made New Year’s resolutions to be more physically active, which is important because research shows the average person spends 8-10 hours per day sitting. Studies have found a sedentary lifestyle is associated with reduced quality of life, shorter lifespan, and chronic diseases. For example, a study conducted by the National Institutes of Health gathered physical activity data from 650,000 adults and examined their life expectancy. The results indicated low levels of activity, such as walking for 10 minutes a day, were associated with an increase in life expectancy by two years. Engaging in 45 minutes of exercise per day was associated with four additional years of life. The study also found that obese and inactive people decreased their life expectancy by seven years. Overall, participating in physical activity and living a healthy lifestyle can help increase your life expectancy. The national guidelines suggest adults should engage in moderate physical activity for at least two and a half hours per week or 75 minutes of high intensity exercise per week. If lack of time is an issue, try doing three 10 minute intervals for a total of 30 minutes a day for five days a week. Another option is to purchase a pedometer and aim to reach 10,000 steps daily. Steps add up quickly and making small modifications like walking to a co-workers desk instead of emailing them or taking the stairs will help get you moving. NIH News in Health: Don’t Just Sit There!. NIH. http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/issue/dec2012/feature1*

*

PAGE 5

February  is  here  and  it’s  a  special  time  of  year!  February  is  heart  month,  and  we  aren’t  just  talking  about  Valentine’s  Day,  the  whole  month  of  February  is  dedicated  to  fighting  heart  disease  and  helping  people  become aware of ways to keep their hearts healthy and strong so they can lead long, happy lives.

According  to  the  Centers  for  Disease  Control  and  Prevention,  “Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States; one in every three deaths is from heart disease and stroke, equal to 2,200  deaths  per  day.”

Heart disease is a serious issue. Fortunately there are simple ways to combat the disease by taking care of your body. It is important to maintain a healthy weight and stick to a diet with a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Shop around the outside isles at the grocery store. Here you are less likely to fill your cart with processed foods that are bad for your body and your heart.

Exercise is crucial. Just like our biceps and our quadriceps, our heart is a muscle within our bodies too! The best way to strengthen your heart muscle is to make it work. Heart pounding activities are great for the  heart  and  help  keep  the  arteries  clear  of  plaque!  It’s  recommended  that  children  get  up  to  60  minutes of physical activity in per day. This is because exercises such as running, swimming, fast walking, jump roping, (just to name a few) elevate the heart rate, making the muscle work harder, causing it to become stronger and healthier!

Smoking plays a big role in heart health. We all know smoking is bad for our teeth and our lungs but many people do not realize cigarette smoke is terrible for our hearts. Cigarette smoke decreases oxygen to the heart which can lead to high blood pressure and heart attacks. It is essential that we give our hearts good clean oxygen through exercise and steer clear of cigarettes and second hand smoke.

Eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and staying smoke free will make your heart happy. The steps are easy and can be achieved by anyone by just tweaking a few bad habits or sticking to the healthy lifestyle you are already accompanied to. Share the love with family members; teach them the importance of heart health and longevity. Make them aware of ways to strengthen their heart muscles. Start this February and become one of the participants fighting to put an end to heart disease.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Be one in a million this American heart month. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/features/heartmonth/.

PAGE 6

Grapefruit &

Asparagus

PAGE 7

Nurse’s News

!Bennett!Elementary!PTO!2014315!Fundraiser!! Help%us%provide%leveled%readers,%math%manipulatives,%and%other%

classroom%instructional%materials%for%our%Bennett%students!%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% !The!Boosterthon!Fun!Run!program!is!a!healthy!alternative!to!traditional!product!sales!that!raises!much3needed!funds!for!our!school!and!over!1400!others!across!America.!The!Boosterthon!program!also!promotes!three!specific!values!during!the!fun3filled!experience:!!Fitness,!Leadership,!and!Character.

!

! Boosterthon!Fun!Run!Basics The%99day%program%will%kick%off%with%a%309minute%school9wide%Pep%Rally%on%February%18th%at%2:00PM%and%

conclude%on%February%27th%with%the%Boosterthon%Fun%Run%event. Students%will%receive%pledges%toward%the%number%of%laps%they%will%run%at%the%Boosterthon%Fun%Run,%or%a%flat%donation.%Students%usually%run%between%309

35%laps.%%Students%will%also%participate%in%daily%character%lessons%and%early%six%daily%character%stickers.%%% ! Every%Bennett%student%will%participate%in%the%Fun%Run,%regardless%of%pledges%raised.%Plus,%Bennett%students%

have%access%to%Boosterthon’s%character%resources.%%Register%at%funrun.com%and%receive%a%free%prize%just%for%

registering!%%%

%

How%can%you%support%our%Fun%Run?%%%

•% Connect%your%child%to%sponsors—friends%&%family—who%can%give%a%pledge.%%(phone,%e9mail,%

Facebook,%Twitter,%etc.)%

•% Come%and%cheer%on%your%child%at%the%Boosterthon%Fun%Run%on%Friday,!February!27th!%•% Go%to%www.boosterthon.com%to%learn%more%about%the%Boosterthon%Fun%Run%or%connect%at%

www.facebook.com/boosterthon%%

More!information!will!come!home!with!your!child!on!February!18th!%Thanks!in!advance!for!supporting%Bennett!Elementary!PTO.%

Great&Communities…%

Plug%In%To%Serve%

Amplify%Others%

Listen%For%Feedback%

Play%Hard%

Thank%Your%Crowd%

PAGE 8

PTO NEWS

PAGE 9

PAGE 10