614 E Adams St
Jackson, MO 63755
Phone: (573) 243-9501Fax: (573) 243-9503

Nutrition Education


Goal 1:  The Jackson R-2 School District’s goal is to integrate sequential nutrition education to provide students with the necessary knowledge and skills to make healthy nutrition decisions.  In order to achieve this goal, the District will:


Action Step 1:  Provide students with adequate nutrition knowledge including:

  • The benefits of healthy eating.

  • Essential nutrients.

  • Nutritional deficiencies.

  • Principles of healthy weight management.

  • The use and misuse of dietary supplements.

  • Safe food preparation, handling and storage.


Action Step 2:
  Provide students with nutrition-related skills that minimally include the ability to:

  • Plan healthy meals.

  • Understand and use food labels.

  • Apply the principles of USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans and MyPlate.

  • Critically evaluate nutrition information, misinformation and commercial food advertising.

  • Assess personal eating habits, nutrition goal-setting and achievement.


Action Step 3:
  Provide instructional activities that stress the appealing aspects of 

healthy eating and are hands-on and developmentally appropriate.


Action Step 4:  Ensure that school counselors, social workers and health service providers are able to recognize conditions such as                                                    unhealthy weight, eating disorders and other nutrition-related health problems and, when appropriate, provide                                                              information about these conditions, including available treatment options.


Action Step 5:
  Coordinate the food service program with nutrition instruction.


Nutrition Promotion


Goal 2:  The district will promote the importance of good nutrition in its schools and in the community through one or more of the following activities:


Action Step 1:
Providing nutrition information to parents/guardians via social media, newsletters, 

                                   handouts, presentations or other appropriate means. (Use short video clips, share

                                   Food/Nutrition FB page, posts on District FB page.)

      a.  Post links to research and articles explaining the connections 

between good nutrition and academic performance.

      b.  Incorporate nutrition promotion in elementary family nights.


Action Step 2: 
Disseminating information about community programs that offer nutrition assistance to families.


Action Step 3:  Promote healthy choices that would meet Smart Snacks in School 

     nutrition standards for student and class motivators, classroom and 

      birthday celebrations offered to students.  Along with promoting healthy choices offered in district sponsored                                               concession stands.
        
a.  The District will provide to parents the link to the Smart Snacks Calculator to see if a food or beverage meets the                                         Smart Snack nutrition standards.
                
b.  The District will provide teachers and other relevant school staff with a list of alternative ways to reward students.


Physical Activity


Goal 3:  The District’s physical activity goal is to assist students in learning to value and enjoy physical activity as an ongoing part of a healthy lifestyle by ensuring that every student has the opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to perform a variety of physical activities, maintain physical fitness and regularly participate in physical activity.  In order to achieve the physical activity goal, the District will:

        
Action Step 1:  Develop a sequential program of appropriate physical education for every student.

  • Each elementary student will receive instruction in physical education for a minimum of 50 minutes each week.

  • Elementary school students shall have a minimum of 1 recess period of 20 minutes per day, which may be incorporated into the lunch period.

  • Students in middle school/junior high receive a minimum of 3,000 minutes each year in physical education.

  • Students in grades 9-12 must earn 1 unit credit in physical education prior to graduation. Additional requirement- 30 minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation instruction & training in the proper performance of Heimlich maneuver or other first aid for choking.


Action Step 2:  Provide opportunities and encouragement for students to  
                                   
voluntarily participate in before- and after-school physical activity programs, such as intramural activities,                                                                      interscholastic athletics and clubs.


Action Step 3:  Provide resources and information for families to encourage and promote physical activity at home.


Action Step 4:
  Work collaboratively with elementary PBIS teams to discourage 
                                   
the use of physical activity as a form of discipline and ensure that physical   
                                   
education and recess will not be withheld as punishment.


Action Step 5:
  Work collaboratively with elementary PBIS teams to encourage                                                                                                                                                  “breaks,” such as “brain breaks” to avoid periods of inactivity that exceed 2 or more
                                    
hours.


Action Step 6:
  Provide and encourage daily periods of moderate to vigorous physical activity for all participants in on-site after-                                                          school child care programs and early childhood extended day programs.


Action Step 7:
  Provide opportunities and encouragement for staff to be physically active by offering the “Live Healthy” program.


Action Step 8:
  Explore the option of piloting “recess before lunch” at an elementary building.




Other School-Based Activities

Goal 4:  The District’s goal for other school-based activities is to ensure an integrated whole-school approach to the District’s wellness program. The District will achieve this goal by:


Action Step 1:
  The District will collaborate with agencies and groups conducting 
                                   
nutrition education in the community to send consistent messages to students and 
                                   
their families.

  • Have representation on the Healthy Communities Coalition.


Action Step 2:  The District will strive to engage families as partners in their children’s education by supporting parental efforts to                                                     motivate and help their children with maintaining and improving their health by:

  • Providing nutrient analyses of district menus.

  • Providing parents/guardians a list of foods that meet the district’s nutrition standards for snacks.

  • Encouraging parents/guardians to pack healthy lunches and snacks.

  • Designing curricular nutrition education activities and promotions to involve parents/guardians.

  • Sharing information about physical activity and nutrition via the district’s website, newsletters, other take-home materials and social media.


Action Step 3:  The District will continue to encourage health and wellness by:

  • Collaborating with the community to provide locally grown produce when possible.

  • Applying for Healthier School Challenges or Participating in Play60.

  • Offering Staff Wellness Program.

  • Participating in the School Health Index.


WELLNESS POLICY EVALUATION APPROVAL

The Jackson R-2 School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, disability, age, or any other characteristic protected by law in its programs, activities or employment practices.