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| Students making gains in physical fitness |
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| Written by Maddy Houk / Patterson Irrigator | |
| Saturday, 06 October 2007 | |
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The percentage of students passing all six of the California Physical Fitness tests increased this year. At a glance Year State District 5th 7th 9th 2004-05 26.6% 21.9% 23.3% 23.9% 18.4% 2005-06 27.5% 16.2% 16.2% 26.6% 24.4% 2006-07 * 19.2% 19.2% 34.4% 30.6% Local students are making some gains on state physical fitness tests, with the greatest gains found among high-school and middle-school students, Patterson Unified School District’s board learned Monday night. Cathy Schulz-Brown, teacher on special assignment for assessment and intervention, told the board that the percentage students passing all six of the California Physical Fitness tests rose from 21.9 percent in 2004-2005 to 28 percent in 2006-2007. Fifth-, seventh- and ninth-graders from throughout the state take an intense group of tests annually. Those tests measure aerobic capacity, body composition, abdominal strength and endurance, trunk extension length, flexibility and upper body strength. School board member Michele Bays suggested measuring year-to-year progress rather than focusing on specific age groups. “I’m wondering about giving kids the wrong message about only being fit in the fifth-seventh- and ninth-grades,” Bays said. The state fitness tests target specific areas of physical health. The Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run, also known as PACER, and a 1-mile run and walk test, measure aerobic capacity. Creekside Middle School Principal Shawn Posey, who was in the meeting audience, said students like PACER, which is done on the basketball court and is measured in 20-meter laps. A buzzer sounds when a student has completed the requirement. “The kids enjoy it,” Posey said, adding students prefer that test done in the air-conditioned gym as opposed to the 1-mile run done outside. Students’ body composition is tested using skin fold measurements and body mass index. An abdominal strength and endurance test is done using curl-ups. Trunk extension strength is measured by a trunk lift. Flexibility tests include the sit-and-reach and shoulder stretch. A student’s upper body strength is measured by push-ups, modified pull-ups and a flexed-arm hang. For the flexed-arm hang, the students hang from a bar, raise up until their chins clear the bar and lower their body to the beginning hang position. Schulz-Brown said there are new efforts in the district focusing on healthy food preparation, emphasizing that nutrition and fitness go hand in hand. Continuing that theme, Food Service Manager Rhonda Whitehead updated the board on nutritional choices being made in local schools. The local district enacted a wellness policy last year, and most high-fat, unhealthy foods have been phased out. State laws limiting the availability of foods with fat and sugar went into effect July 1 — phasing soda out of high schools. California public schools have until July 2009 to remove all sodas from campuses. Now, school snacks cannot contain more than four grams of fat per 100-calorie serving. In addition, fat, saturated fat and sugar in food served to elementary, middle- and high-school students must be limited. The only beverages that can be sold on campus are milk, water or juice with at least 50 percent fruit juice. The district wellness policy has been in place for the past year, so most students are used to the healthy choices. The biggest change has been at the high school level, where there are no more sodas or vending machines. Whitehead brought a display of fruit juices and healthy snacks to the board meeting. She said students are served healthy dishes that include whole-wheat bread and buns, as well as salads and sub sandwiches. High-school kids are getting used to the change and already have some favorites to eat. “We started with 30 sub sandwiches a day and how we’re serving 200 a day,” Whitehead said. The food service staff is always looking for new items to sell and recently met with food vendors to get ideas on what to serve to students, she told the board. “We’ve been looking at all kinds of items,” Whitehead said. “We’re trying to be creative. We’re trying as hard as we can to offer choices for kids and follow policy.” To reach Maddy Houk at the Irrigator, call 892-6187 or e-mail her at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
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