507.9E1 - Wellness Policy Appendix A, B, C, D
Appendix A
The school district will provide nutrition education and engage in nutrition that:
- Is offered at each grade level as part of a sequential, comprehensive, standards-based program designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote and protect their health;
- Includes enjoyable, developmentally appropriate, culturally relevant participatory activities;
- Promotes fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat and fat-free dairy products, healthy food preparation methods and health-enhancing nutrition practices;
- Participate in the Pick A Better Snack Nutrition Program; and
- Includes training for teachers and other staff.
Appendix B
Physical Activity
Physical Education
- Is for all students in grades K-12;
- Is taught by a certified physical education teacher;
- Includes students with disabilities and special health-care needs;
- Engages students in moderate to vigorous activity during at least 50 percent of physical education class time; and,
- Will not allow substitution for meeting the physical education requirement by student involvement in other activities involving physical activity.
Recess
Elementary schools should provide recess for students that:
- Is at least 20 minutes a day;
- Is preferably outdoors;
- Encourages moderate to vigorous physical activity through the provision of space and equipment; and
- Discourages extended periods of inactivity.
When activities, such as mandatory school-wide testing, make it necessary for students to remain indoors for long periods of time, school should give periodic breaks during which they are encouraged to stand and be moderately active.
Physical Activity and Punishment
Teachers and other school and community personnel should not use physical activity (running laps, push-ups) or withhold opportunities for physical activity (recess, physical education) as punishment.
Appendix C
Other School-Based Activities that Promote Student Wellness
Integrating Physical Activity into Classroom Settings
For students to receive the nationally recommended amount of daily physical activity (at least 60 minutes per day) and for student to fully embrace regular physical activity as a personal behavior, students need opportunities for physical activity beyond physical education class. Toward that end WACO will:
- Offer classroom health education that compliments physical education by reinforcing the knowledge and self-management skills needed to maintain a physically active lifestyle and to reduce time spent on sedentary activities;
- Discourage sedentary activities, such as watching television; and,
- Provide opportunities for physical activity to be incorporated into other subject lessons.
Communication with Parents
The district/school will support parents’ efforts to provide a healthy diet and daily physical activity for their children. The WACO Community Schools will:
- Provide parents with a list of foods that meet the district’s snack standards and ideas for healthy celebrations/parties, rewards and fundraising activities;
- Encourage parents to pack healthy lunches and snacks and refrain from including beverages and foods that do not meet the above nutrition standards for individual foods and beverages;
- Send nutrition information home with students and via the Parent letter;
- Support parents’ efforts to provide their children with opportunities to be physically active outside of school; and,
- Enlist the support of parents with the Pick A Better Snack Program.
Staff Wellness
The WACO Community Schools will value the health and well being of every staff member and will plan and implement activities that support personal efforts by staff to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The district will:
- Develop, promote and oversee a plan to promote staff health and wellness;
- Offer and encourage staff participation in wellness activities and yearly health screening; and,
- Offer and support participation of school based influenza vaccination.
Appendix D
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NUTRITION GUIDELINES FOR ALL FOODS AVAILABLE ON CAMPUS
School Meals
Meals served through the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs will:
• be appealing and attractive to children;
• be served in clean and pleasant settings;
• meet, at a minimum, nutrition requirements established by local, state and federal law;
• offer a variety of fruits and vegetables; and -
• ensure that half of the served grains are whole grain.
WACO Community Schools will:
• engage students and parents through surveys, in selecting foods offered through the meal programs in order to identify new, healthful and appealing food choices; and,
• share information about the nutritional content of meals with parents and students. (The information could be made available on menus, a web site, on cafeteria menu boards, placards or other point-of-purchase materials.)
Breakfast
To ensure that all children have breakfast, either at home or at school, in order to meet their nutritional needs and enhance their ability to learn, the WACO Community Schools will:
· operate the breakfast program, to the extent possible;
· arrange bus schedules and utilize methods to serve breakfasts that encourage participation;
· notify parents and students of the availability of the School Breakfast Program, where available; and,
· encourage parents to provide a healthy breakfast for their children through newsletter articles, take-home materials or other means.
Free and Reduced-Priced Meals
The school district will make every effort to eliminate any social stigma attached to, and prevent the overt identification of, students who are eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Toward this end, the school district may:
· utilize electronic identification and payment systems;
· provide meals at no charge to all children, regardless of income; and,
· promote the availability of meals to all students.
Meal Times and Scheduling
The WACO Community Schools:
· will provide students with an appropriate time for breakfast and lunch;
· should schedule meal periods at appropriate times, e.g., lunch should be schedu1ed between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm; should not schedule tutoring, club or organizational meetings or activities during mealtimes, unless students may eat during such activities;
· will provide students access to hand washing or hand sanitizing before they eat; and
· students who have special oral health needs will be allowed appropriate accommodations.
Qualification of Food Service Staff
Qualified nutrition professionals will administer the meal programs. As part of the school district’s responsibility to operate a food service program, the school district will:
· provide continuing professional development for all nutrition professionals; and,
· provide staff development programs that include appropriate certification and/or training programs for child nutrition directors, nutrition managers and cafeteria workers, according to their levels of responsibility.
Sharing of Foods
The school district discourages students from sharing their foods or beverages with one another during meal or snack times, given concerns about allergies and other restrictions on some children’s diets.
Foods Sold Outside the Meal (e.g. vending, a la carte, sales)
Elementary schools: The food service program will approve and provide all food and beverage sales to students in elementary schools. To this end:
· food in elementary schools should be sold as balanced meals, given young children’s limited nutrition skills; and,
· foods and beverages sold individually should be limited to low-fat and non-fat milk, fruits and non-fried vegetables.
Secondary schools: In middle/junior high and high school, all foods and beverages sold individually outside the reimbursable meal programs (including those sold through a la carte [snack] lines, vending machines, student stores or fundraising activities) during the school day, or through programs for students after the school day, will meet the following nutrition and portion size standards:
Beverages
· Allowed: water or seltzer water without added caloric sweeteners; fruit and vegetable juices and fruit-based drinks that contain at least 50 percent fruit juice and that do not contain additional caloric sweeteners; unflavored or flavored low-fat or fat-free milk and nutritionally equivalent nondairy beverages (as defined by the USDA).
· Not allowed: soft drinks containing caloric sweeteners; sports drinks; iced tea fruit-based drinks that contain less than 50 percent real fruit juice or that contain additional caloric sweeteners; beverages containing caffeine, excluding low-fat or fat-free chocolate milk (which contain minimal amounts of caffeine) will not be sold during the instructional day.
Foods
A food item sold individually:
· will have no more than 35 percent of its calories from fat (excluding nuts, seeds, peanut butter and other nut butters) and 10 percent of its calories from saturated and trans fat combined;
· will have no more than 35 percent of its weight from added sugars;
· will contain no more than 230 mg of sodium per serving for chips, cereals, crackers, french fries, baked goods and other snack items; will contain no more than 480 mg of sodium per serving for pastas, meats and soups; and will contain no more than 600 mg of sodium for pizza, sandwiches and main dishes;
Examples: Food items could include, but are not limited to, fresh fruits and percent fruit or vegetable juice; fruit-based drinks that are at least 50 percent real fruit juice and do not contain additional caloric sweeteners; cooked, dried or canned fruits (light syrup); and cooked, dried or canned vegetables (that meet the above guidelines).
Fundraising Activities
· all fundraising projects are encourage to follow the district nutrition standards
· all fundraising projects for sale and consumption within and prior to the instructional day will be expected to make every effort to follow the district’s nutrition standards
Snacks
Snacks served during the school day or in after-school care or enrichment programs will make a positive contribution to children’s diets and health, with an emphasis on serving fruits and vegetables as the primary snacks and water as the primary beverage. Schools will assess if and when to offer snacks based on timing of meals, children’s nutritional needs, children’s ages and other considerations. The school district will disseminate a list of healthful snack items to teachers, after-school program personnel and parents.
If eligible, schools that provide snacks through after-school programs will pursue reimbursements through the National School Lunch Program.
Rewards
Strong consideration should be given to nonfood items as part of any teacher-to-student incentive programs. Should teachers feel compelled to utilize food items as an incentive they are encouraged to adhere to the district nutrition standards.
Celebrations
Schools should evaluate their celebrations practices that involve food during the school day. The district will disseminate a list of healthy party ideas to parents and teachers.
School-Sponsored Events
Foods and beverages offered or sold at school-sponsored events outside the school day will meet the nutrition standards for meals or for foods and beverages sold individually.
Food Safety
All foods made available on campus adhere to food safety and security guidelines.
· All foods made available on campus comply with the state and local food safety and sanitation regulations. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans and guidelines are implemented to prevent food illness in schools. http://www.fiis.usda.gov/mfResources/serviunsafe chapter6.pdf
Summer Meals
Schools in which more than 50 percent of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals will sponsor the Summer Food Service Program for at least six weeks between the last day of the academic school year and the first day of the following school year, and, preferably, throughout the entire summer vacation.
Appendix E
PLAN FOR MEASURING IMPLEMENTATION I
Monitoring
The superintendent will ensure compliance with established school district-wide nutrition and physical activity wellness policies.
In each school:
· the principal will ensure compliance with those policies in the school and will report on the school’s compliance to the superintendent; and,
· food service staff, at the school or school district level, will ensure compliance with nutrition policies within food service areas and will report on this matter to the superintendent or principal.
n the school district:
· the school district will report on the most recent USDA School Meals Initiative (SMI) review findings and any resulting changes. If the school district has not received a SMI review from the state agency within the past five years, the school district will request from the state agency that a SMI review be scheduled as soon as possible;
· the superintendent will develop a summary report every three years on school district-wide compliance with the school district’s established nutrition and physical activity wellness policies, based on input from schools within the school district; and,
· the report will be provided to the school board and also distributed to all school wellness committees, parent/teacher organizations, principals and health services personnel in the school district.
Policy Review
To help with the initial development of the school district’s wellness policies, each school will conduct a baseline assessment of the school’s existing nutrition and physical activities practices. The results of those school-by-school assessments will be compiled at the school to identify and prioritize needs.
Assessments will be repeated every three years to help review policy compliance, as to determine areas in need of improvement. As part of that review, the school district will review the nutrition and physical activity policies and practices and the provision of an environment that supports physical activity. The school district, and individual schools within the school district will, revise the wellness policies and develop work plans to facilitate their implementation.