Provided by Prince William County Schools (PWCS)
McAuliffe Elementary School students did not wait until the new year to start working on their fitness goals. A Winter Break Fitness Challenge inspired them to be active every day of the two-week break.
From the 22-second superman to crab walks and toe touches, each day had a suggested exercise that students have learned in their physical education (P.E.) classes. Parents and guardians were asked to track the students’ activity.
Favorite exercises included jogging in place, pushups, burpees, planks, and jumping jacks. One student boasted about doing 30 jumping jacks, the exercise for the fifth day of the challenge, instead of the required 25 jumping jacks. On day seven, the exercise was to hold a plank for 27 seconds. A student proudly said they held the plank for a full minute.
The challenge was coordinated by P.E. Teacher Jeanne Schlevensky. “I really wanted to do this challenge with our students to give them an optional activity every day that kept them active over winter break,” she said.
Principal Janice Herritt said that some parents and teachers also participated.
Prizes were up for grabs for participating in the challenge. Students who completed at least eight days of exercises won a bronze award and received a jump rope. Silver award winners earned a water bottle. These students did nine to 12 days of the challenge. Gold award winners won a cinch sack and a water bottle for completing 13 to 16 days of exercises.
