Health Promoting School

 

 

Courtesy Week 10^th– 14^th March 2014

 As part of our Health Promoting Schools Status we will be running a courtesy week from the 10^th – 14^th March.  During this week the boys will receive courtesy lessons incorporated into Art, SPHE and other areas of the curriculum.  To make it more effective we will be targeting three areas:

•say please

•say thank you

•stand to the side for an adult in the doorways and corridors of our school.

We are asking for your co-operation to make this a successful week by talking with your child at home about manners and courtesy.

 

Healthy Eating Week September 2013

Thank you to all our pupils, parents and staff for participating in our recent healthy eating week.  We saw some very imaginative and creative lunches and we hope that we will see them again during the year. Leaflets and booklets were given to some of the boys during the week as part of their healthy eating lessons in the classroom. We hope you will take a little time to have a look at these as they contain some very useful and handy tips and guidelines. Some of these leaflets include:

‘Fats of Life’ posters and magazines

‘Reading food labels’ cards and information leaflets

There are links to useful health promoting websites at the bottom of this page.

 

Successful Healthy Eating Week 2013!!

Thank you for your co-operation with last week’s successful Healthy Eating Week.  There was a noticeable improvement with the lunches and this could not have happened without your support. 

Special thanks to Centra in Crosshaven for providing us with bottles of water. 

Thanks again to Glenilen Farm for the tasty yogurts which were enjoyed by many.

Although Healthy Eating Week is over for this year we encourage you to continue this good practice into the future as healthy food and a healthy lifestyle contributes to a healthier body and mind.

 

Healthy Eating Week 2013

We are a health promoting school (HPS) encouraging our pupils to bring healthy lunches to school and lead a healthy lifestyle. 

We will be having a healthy eating week in our school from the 29^th April – 3^rd May to raise awareness among our pupils about the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle.  During this week our teachers will incorporate healthy eating into the curriculum through Art, Science, English, Geography, SPHE, etc. 

The majority of our boys are very good at bringing in healthy lunches.   We are asking for your co-operation during this week to make a special effort to ensure your son brings a healthy lunch by including the following from the Food Pyramid on these specific days:

Monday- fruit

Tuesday- dairy e.g. milk, yogurt, cheese

Wednesday- vegetables

Thursday- bread or cereals or potatoes or pasta or rice

Friday- protein e.g. meat, chicken, fish, eggs, beans plus a treat (Our Healthy Eating Guidelines state that Friday is our treat day in school)

The boys who make a great effort for our Healthy Eating Week will receive a ‘Healthy Eater Award’ certificate on Friday.

For more information on the Food Pyramid go to http://www.safefood.eu/Healthy-Eating/Food-Diet/What-is-a-balanced-diet/The-Food-Pyramid.aspx

Special thanks to Glenilen Farm for providing yogurts to us with their launch of new childrens yogurts. Go to www.glenilenfarm.com to find out more.

 

HEALTHY  EATING  GUIDELINES

 

Scoil Chros tSeáin, through these guidelines aims to help all those involved in our school community, children, staff and parents, in developing positive and responsible attitudes to eating and to appreciate the contribution that good food makes to health.

 

Nutrition – what people eat is known to be one of the key factors influencing the health of school children and also staff.  Diets, high in sugar have a detrimental effect on concentration and learning.

 

Some of the healthy snacks that we encourage include:

Small Break: popcorn (plain), fruit, flap-jacks, yoghurt, fromage frais, cheese strings, rice cakes.

Lunches: sandwiches (preferably wholemeal bread), crackers, scones, soup, pasta, raw vegetables – carrots, celery stick, cucumber etc. salad box, cheese-triangles or diced, yoghurt, fruit – apples, oranges, kiwis, pears, plums, raisins, melon slices etc. milk, water and unsweetened fruit juices.

 

Exceptions to the above may be made on special occasions e.g. school parties/tours etc. and at the teachers’ discretion.

 

Foods discouraged include; sweets, biscuits, bars, crisps, fizzy drinks.

 

Peanut Allergy

Due to the increases in peanut allergies among children, we recommend that peanuts and peanut products be excluded from school lunchboxes.  We discourage sharing of food amongst pupils for the same reason.

 

Chewing gum is banned under the School Rules.

 

Cans and glasses are not permitted for safety and litter reasons.

 

Foods, which have wrappers, are to be kept to a minimum and disposed of properly.  All children are asked to take their own rubbish home each day.

 

Friday is our treat day.  On this day one treat may be included in the lunch box.

 

All classes will receive a minimum of 2 lessons on Healthy Eating each year.

Teachers will provide modelling and supportive attitudes to encourage healthy eating.

 

Teachers can encourage children to eat their lunches but they cannot force a child to eat.

 

Problems with lunches can only be resolved by parent and child.

 

Healthy Eating Guidelines will be reviewed and a Healthy Eating Week and Exercise Week will be held each year.

 

Healthy Eating Websites

HSE website has good ideas for healthy lunch boxes and healthy breakfasts:

http://www.hse.ie/eng/services/Publications/services/Children/healthynurtitionpub.html

 

The HSE have a resource pack for pre-school children with a 3-week menu plan:

http://www.healthpromotion.ie/hp-files/docs/HPR00901.pdf

 

Healthy Eating guidelines from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland have a free download called ‘Healthy Eating and Active Living for Adults, Teenagers and Children over 5 years- A Food Guide for Health Professionals and Catering Services:

http://www.fsai.ie/news_centre/healthy_eating_guidelines_booklet/13062012.html

 

‘Your guide to healthy eating using the food pyramid’ from the Department of Health and the HSE explains the new food pyramid that was launched last year:

http://www.dohc.ie/publications/pdf/YourGuide_HealthyEating_FoodPyramid.pdf?direct=1

 

The Irish Heart Foundation has a ‘Nutrition and Children Fact Sheet’:

https://www.irishheart.ie/media/pub/factsheets/nutrition__children.pdf

 

Safe and healthy eating in Ireland

http://www.safefood.eu/Healthy-Eating.aspx