5-2-1-0 Spotlight: Shuler Elementary 5th Grade Team
This month we sat down with Jennifer Stanek, a 5th grade teacher at Shuler Elementary in Waukee, to chat about the efforts of her 5th grade team to highlight 5-2-1-0 and healthy habits for their kids. From monthly themes, to assemblies, a school garden and so much more, they stay busy as a 5th grade squad. How do they find the time for so many fun 5-2-1-0 centered activities? To Jennifer and her fellow teachers, it all comes down to student leadership and creating a network to lean on so they can make their ideas a reality.
The list of awesome activities happening around 5-2-1-0 at Shuler is long. Monthly themes like Heart Health Month in February and focusing on the ‘5’ and ‘0’ in march were supported by assemblies and activities that match. Things like fruit and veggie infused water stations, taste testing, and activities like Sugar Detective and Soccer for Success (both put on by our partners at ISU Extension and Outreach!) have helped the kids learn about each number in active and unique ways.
Shuler’s “Squads” serve as passion clubs for kids to meet once a month and feature focuses like gardening and healthy snacking. The shuler garden has been growing lettuce the kids will get to eat at lunch in the coming weeks and the kids have even incubated and hatched chicks they get to take care of for a little while longer until they find their permanent home on a nearby farm. Last but not least the 5th grade class is lending a hand in the school’s special events including field day where they will lead stations for younger students and family night where they also led activities.
This all sounds like a lot of work, but Jennifer recognizes the importance of these activities to their students.
“Teaching the last few years has had a lot of pressure on academics and testing, so it’s easy to forget about life skills,” she said “Things like 5-2-1-0 are so important. It’s so important to provide kids with tools to live happy, healthy, and safe lives.” The key, she said, is a strong network of community partners and engaged teachers that can work together to lighten each other's load.
For assemblies and activities like Soccer for Success and Sugar Detectives, Sally Shaver Dubois and Kim Kuester from ISU Extension are excellent partners. The school garden? Started by a particularly green thumbed former 5th grade teacher, Amber Allen Cosimo, and tended to over the summer by parents of students who volunteered their time. School Counselor Keri Lindstrom, Dietitian Kaitlyn Sheuermann, and Nurse Ellie Shane all lend a hand with activities and subjects close to their roles including mindfulness activities, taste testing, and leading squads for the students. Finally, the school’s parent teacher organization and administrators play a part in helping assemble the necessary resources.
The unsung heroes of all this work Jennifer said, are the students themselves. With such busy jobs the students have been incredibly involved in ensuring these fun ideas get off the ground through their Clover Power Healthy Living Ambassador program that sees 5th graders take on true leadership roles for these initiatives. Students are taught their responsibilities tending to the garden, are involved in working lunches occasionally with teachers to help plan, and take a big part in leading younger students through activities and events.
“Every year we think, yeah we’re teaching students, but how can we lift them up and show them they can be leaders and teach them those life skills,” Jennifer said.
This network of organizers wasn’t set up overnight, and other schools shouldn’t expect to do their own that fast either. “Take one activity you think will be profound for students and work with people who can support you from administrators, to community members or school dietitians, and once that feels good continue to provide new opportunities.”
While older students learn leadership and younger students enjoy fun, healthy habit forming lessons, Jennifer knows teaching the 5-2-1-0 message is about more than the usual academics going on in school. These unique experiences stick with the kids longer than we think.
“The things they are going to remember are the chicks and the lettuce and field days.”
While we chatted with Jennifer she wanted to emphasize that she is just a part of a team, and that team’s members really make it all possible. “We’re always talking about 5-2-1-0 so kids can get that common language and start utilizing it and remembering it.” Former and current faculty including Amber Allen Cosimo, Robin Julseth, Shawnel Seifried, Grace Thomas, Nikki Kennedy, Jenni Stanek all received praise, as well as community members and partners like Sally Shaver Dubois (Clover Power/ISU Extension), Kim Kuester (Iowa State Extension/Soccer for Success), Kaitlyn Scheuermann (Waukee Nutritionist), and Jamie Champion (Dallas County Ag.).
“We’re always talking about 5-2-1-0 so kids can get that common language and start utilizing it and remembering it.” Jennifer said. It’s safe to say that common language created not just lifelong memories Shuler students will remember for years, but life lessons they can rely on as they grow up to live their healthiest lives as well.