Wellness on the New Frontier...moving forward with Mr. Coghill

Two years ago our Mr. Coghill took up the challenge of redefining what Physical Education would look like at Woodhaven Middle School.  Mr. Coghill, a triathlete who has competed at Iron Man Canada, is committed to the wellness of both our students and staff.  Three years ago the U of A did a study of our Grade 5 students which painted a picture of students who did not eat well and did not get enough daily activity.  I shared these results with Mr. Coghill and we discussed what we needed to do to change that wellness profile.

From that moment forward Mr. Coghill has worked diligently, and now with Mr. McLachlan, Mr. Chan, Mr. Zalasky and Mrs. Davis is moving our work from being a Physical Education class to a Wellness program.  In fact, PE is not a term  you hear at Woodhaven... now its all Wellness all the time.  We have reoriented the program from a focus on game activity to skill development for life long wellness.  This allows everybody to be a learner regardless of their talent level.

We now have a Student Wellness Action Team SWAT that is in charge of monthly wellness challenges which are tracked by every homeroom.  This month's challenge is drinking 6 glasses of water per day.  These students also involved with health snack options being offered during our morning break.

Mr. Coghill also worked closely with Ms. Neumann to encorporate Wellness and Health Education.  All our Health Days include a wellness component involving either activity or nutrition.  It is through his work that we have set guidelines regarding soft drinks, slushes and energy drinks in our building.  He has also worked with our School Council to encourage their Grab and Go free nutritious breakfast.

His work has extended to the staff who have done much to increase their personal levels of fitness.  In the spring Kids With Cancer fundraiser we were up to 15 staff members who participated in the 5 KM run.  There has been a significant change in the types of snacks available in our staff room and we now have a healthy 'Soup Club'.

Thanks Mr. Coghill...your work has found its way into  everything we do.