Think Healthy Thursday: Food Shelf Donations

Since the Summer of 2011 we have been promoting a balanced MyPlate diet for our families, student and clients. We want to remind folks to think healthy when they are making a food shelf donations too. We’ve heard stories of food shelves getting large donations of outdated or damaged food. Do everyone a favor and throw those out! Here are some ideas of what the food shelves need and want:

• Choose low-sodium options for beans, broth, soup, and vegetables.
• Choose low-fat or whole grain options for cereal, crackers, and pasta.
• Fresh garden produce is often welcome. (Just call in advance to make sure.)
• Single serving foods like fruit cups and 100% fruit juice boxes are easy and safe to pack for school lunches.
• Consider donating money. In Minnesota we heard about a food shelf that got a 40-pound box of meat for $4.80 –one dollar can buy seven pounds of healthy food from the Food Bank of CNY in New York.

From Austin, Texas we got a list of the most-requested items:

• Canned meats like tuna, stew and chili (pop-tops preferred)
• Canned vegetables
• Pasta & pasta sauce
• Beans
• Healthy cereals
• Peanut butter

It’s a great time of year to give – just make sure you’re giving a gift that’s healthy and wanted!

Nutrtion Education Makes the Roadmap to a Healthier Minnesota

The Minnesota Health Care Reform Task Force is looking at ways to promote better health care, lower health care costs and healthier communities in their Roadmap to a Healthier Minnesota. We have a suggestion – better nutrition education is an investment in lower health care costs in the long run. Actually the report is focused on improvement over the next decade and they get into the nitty gritty details of health care costs – but we were pleased to see that our suggestion (made after the report came out!) was not ignored.

The Task Force suggests the following…

Strategy Element #18: Evaluate and perform gap analysis on school health reforms. The Departments of Education, Health, and Human Services shall convene a multi-agency body to evaluate the impact of recent school and health reforms (including, but not limited to the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010 and the Affordable Care Act of 2010) on student health and K-12 school wellness policies. Nutrition education and the physical activity opportunities of K-12 students shall be a part of this evaluation which will be utilized by the multi-agency body to develop a gap analysis to guide future state policy development.

We are excited that nutrition education and the physical activity are part of the equation being studied. We will eagerly await the full report. We may already have some ideas on the impact, but we look forward to seeing it quantified in our home state and will enjoy seeing how nutrition education will have an impact on future state policy development.

Nominate a Nutrition Education Advocate to win $300 in Resources!

With the season of giving and being thankful upon us, we’d like to host another giveaway to shine light on nutrition education advocates.

Here’s what to do:

Nominate an individual currently involved in nutrition education, someone making a difference in your community that deserves a little recognition. This could be a parent, teacher, student, or even an organization.

Write a paragraph summarizing their work and why you think they deserve to win our grand prize and email it to toni@learningzonexpress.com.

We will then share the nominations on our blog and the Learning ZoneXpress Facebook page.

The deadline for nominations will be December 5th, 2012 and we will select a winner on Friday, December 7th.

The winner will receive a large grab bag of Learning ZoneXpress nutrition products with a value of $300! We will tailor the products to meet the winner’s profession and needs. The package will arrive before the Christmas holiday and in perfect time for the individual or organization to implement and use in 2013!

Can’t wait to read about all of the great influences out there and share their stories!

Learning ZoneXpress CEO Wins Silver in Stevie Awards for Women in Business

All of us here at LZX would like to congratulate the one and only Melanie Nelson for being awarded a Silver Stevie Award for Entrepreneur of the Year!

Melanie Nelson, founder and chief executive officer of Learning ZoneXpress, was awarded a silver award in the ninth annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business at a ceremony Nov. 9 in New York.

Nelson won in the female entrepreneur of the year category (consumer products, 11 to 2,500 employees) for her work in nutrition education.

Learning ZoneXpress became the third entrepreneurial adventure for Nelson, former Family and Consumer Sciences teacher, in 1997 when she saw the need for relevant, creative resources for nutrition and health.

Click here to read the full story on Melanie Nelson and Learning ZoneXpress.

Latest Release: Eating Well with MyPlate Pamphlet

USDA MyPlate is the latest icon designed to promote healthy eating. It is the new food pyramid icon from the USDA that helps promote healthy food choices and healthy eating habits. One of the advantages of MyPlate is its simple design, which allows kids, parents and business families to make the connection between health and food easily. But there is depth of nutritional education in the health icon too.

Introducing Eating Well with MyPlate Brochure

Learning ZoneXpress has created the Eating Well with MyPlate Pamphlet to encourage healthy eating and help families delve into some of the detailed nutritional lessons in the healthy graphic . Our educational nutrition brochure also features simple tips to improve health with MyPlate,. The MyPlate nutrition brochure explains the symbolism of the MyPlate icon, how to build a healthy plate, tips for portion size, how to get a personalized calorie plan, the importance of physical activity, and foods to reduce.

The pamphlets are an easy-to-read nutrition education resource for the doctor’s office, healthcare clinic, classroom, or workplace – anyplace where health care professionals, nutritionists and nutrition and health educators have an opportunity to reach out to parents, families and patients.

Think Healthy Thursday: Wilson Elementary in Owatonna Receives School Health Connection Award

We, at Learning ZoneXpress, are proud to announce that one of our local elementary schools has recently won a $10,000 School Health Connection award to promote healthy activities.  Wilson Elementary in Owatonna, MN is one of just 10 schools to receive this significant award.  The award will allow Wilson Elementary School to have direct access to caregivers from our local Allina Health Clinic.  They will also receive online learning tools, teacher training and a health fair for the entire school.  In addition, the funds will allow the school to purchase needed equipment and supplies to encourage building healthy lifestyles.

Wilson Elementary is serving as a community leader in encouraging the development of life-long healthy habits.  The school has an on-site garden that allows students to participate in planting, caring for, harvesting and tasting fresh vegetables.  Third graders at the school also have the opportunity to come early each morning to school for an exercise program led by one of the P.E. teachers.  Currently, about 25-30 students come regularly.  Teachers at Wilson are also proactive about including physical activity in the classroom by including short movement activities as transitions or as part of the learning experience (example: jumping jacks while counting by 5s).

You or your school may not be the recipient of a $10,000 grant, but you can take steps right now to encourage children (and yourself) to build healthy habits that will last a lifetime.  Including frequent opportunities for movement in the classroom or office is one way to do this.  Children and adults spend much of their day sitting.  Learning ZoneXpress has a great tool to help you get students’ brains and bodies engaged through brief activities.  Our 5 Minute Physical Activities book is written by P.E. teachers and offers a wide variety of fun activities that will recharge you and your students.

Little by little, one healthy choice at a time, we can help our young people learn to make health a priority.  In the process, we as teachers, parents and community members can work on improving our own health as well.

Healthy Alternatives to Halloween Treats

While kids prepare their costumes, parents, doctors and dentists get ready for the Halloween aftershocks of too much sugar. Are there healthy alternatives to bags full of Halloween candy?

Of course there are! Here are five suggestions for nutritious and safe treats that don’t trick the body into unhealthy habits:

Stickers: Kids love stickers for their school books, for craft projects, or to add to their costumes. You can even hand out healthy eating stickers from Learning ZoneXpress. Best of all, stickers don’t have calories, sugar, corn syrup, or Trans fats!

Party Prizes: It’s not too hard to find spider rings, ghost erasers, and other Halloween-themed prizes. We’ve also seen glow bracelets, silly bands, and even tiny tubs of Play Dough. Lots of fun for not a lot of money! Learning ZoneXpress also offers colorful bookmarks and fun temporary tattoos!

Healthy Snacks: Sugar free gum. Granola bars. Small bags of crackers, dried fruit, or pumpkin-shaped pretzels. Safety-conscious parents appreciate something packaged, so fresh fruit, alas, is not such a great idea.

Get Crafty: You can find all kinds of Halloween craft projects online. (There are some clever, crafty websites that can help. You’ll need to make a bunch, so enlist your own kids to help!

Money: Think about giving out nickels, dimes or quarters. The best part? The kids can spend – rather than eat – the leftovers! (And at 20 cents per bite-size bar, it’s about the same price as candy.)

There you have it! Five healthy alternatives to Halloween treats! If you have any other ideas, please leave a comment in the space below or tell us about it on the Learning ZoneXpress Facebook page!

Have a safe, happy, and healthy Halloween everyone!

Latest Release: Garden Heroes Activities Book

Garden Heroes Activities Book

Unhealthy food has had a team of mascots and spokespeople for years. And it attracts kids. Kids love to eat the cereals with the cuddly mascots or choose restaurants with the cutest cartoon. Learning ZoneXpress decided that healthy food needed to find some adorable representatives – as so was born the Garden Hero – cuddly plush toys shaped like fruits and vegetables. Today we’re happy to unveil the latest tool to help teachers and childcare staff promote Garden Heroes with young children.

Garden Heroes Activities Book

Grow a love for fruits and vegetables in young children with this activity book. It is packed full of nutrition education information and education-rich activities. It featuring all 35 cuddly fruit and vegetable Garden Heroes®. The book includes:

• Nutrition Bites: Information on each fruit or vegetable including Spanish name, where it grows, what it looks like, and how to eat it.
• Heroic Facts: Fun and surprising trivia about the fruit or vegetable
• Taste Adventure: A kid-friendly recipe for classroom or home
• Superhero Activity: An activity in math, literacy, art, movement, science, or dramatic play relating to fruits and vegetables.

The Garden Heroes Activities Book targets younger children, preschool, Pre-K, kindergarten and elementary education. It’s often found in classrooms, childcare centers and any place kids congregate to learn about healthy lifestyles. It’s a great way to promote good nutrition, culinary curiosity and a little Spanish!

Latest Release: Kids 1 Great Plate® Magnet

Kids 1 Great Plate® Magnet

Kids respond well to incentives and rewards in the classroom. Candy makes an easy reward – but are you sending the right message? Are you suffering the consequences for the sugar rush in the classroom? Learning ZoneXpress has developed a series of healthy-themed incentives that make teachers and students feel good, including our most recent release…The Kids 1 Great Plate® Magnets

You spend your day promoting healthy choices in the classroom, the childcare center, playground or health care facility. Here’s an incentive that can make you feel good and reinforce your lesson in a fun way.

The Kids 1 Great Plate® Magnets are a set of die-cut round magnets that visually show the division of food groups on a nutritious dinner plate in kid-sized portions. Divisions are based on the USDA MyPlate model including 1/2 fruits and vegetables, 1/4 lean protein, and 1/4 whole grains.

The healthy magnets great visual reminder for refrigerator doors or filing cabinets! They make good incentives for student rewards or fun nutritional trinkets to hand out at a fun fair or school event.

Cyber Security Month Posters for the Classroom

October is Cyber Security Month. Last week while attending the Cyber Security Conference we saw a few of the homemade cyber-security posters (such as the one seen below) that demonstrated the student’s awareness and understanding of cyber-security issues.

We applaud the work of the students and teachers. Cyber-security can be a difficult lesson for both to learn. The Internet is a frontier that few teachers grew up learning.
To help teachers reinforce cyber security and anti-cyberbullying strategies, Learning ZoneXpress has developed a series of posters to promote digital awareness and protection:

Cyberbullying Poster

Text safety Poster

Cyberbullying Poster
Great tips for tweens and teens to prevent cyberbullying using the Internet and mobile phones. The Cyberbullying Poster defines cyberbullying and offers suggestions to stop the bullying.

Cyber Stalking Poster
Say “no way” to keep internet creeps and stalkers at bay. The Cyber Stalking Poster offers helpful tips to protecting yourself from stalkers on social networking sites, message board, and chat rooms.

Text Safety Poster
Think safety and use sound judgment before you hit send! The Text Safety Poster makes tweens and teens “think before you send” with some common-sense tips to put safety first when text messaging others.