KLRN, San Antonio’s PBS station, has received a $50,000 grant from the San Antonio Medical Foundation for phase three of The Healthy Kids Project. In addition, St. Luke’s Lutheran Health Ministries provided $5,000 to benefit the Parent Engagement Support Program. The Healthy Kids Project is an educational initiative that uses a standardized curriculum, by the same name, that supports and encourages healthy lifestyles by influencing eating decisions and physical activities—and combines resources for children, their teachers, and their families.
The Healthy Kids Project was launched in 2011 through a partnership with the San Antonio Medical Foundation and Gottalook Productions. Through the project, KLRN shares media resources and lesson plans with Kindergarten, First Grade, and Second Grade educators—all lessons that are aligned to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). The classes are introduced to The Healthy Kids Project songs, live action movement, animation, and a cast of “perfectly imperfect” characters to deliver key messaging that contrasts healthy choices and attitudes with unhealthy behaviors. The overall goal of the project is to provide a resource that leads to emotionally and physically healthy children.
History of the project
In Phase 1 of the project, KLRN partnered with Harlandale Independent School District and Edgewood Independent School District in School Year 2013-2014 in San Antonio, TX. The project targeted 2 elementary campuses in each district—reaching 1,200+ students and supporting 32 educators.
KLRN partnered with Edgewood Independent School District for Phase 2 of The Healthy Kids Project in School Year 2014-2015 in San Antonio, TX. KLRN targeted all 10 elementary campuses—reaching 2,900+ students and supporting 150+ educators.
Plans for Phase 3
KLRN will produce a final report in Summer 2016 to capture: project implementation, utilization of materials, students’ understanding of healthy habits, and to highlight Phase 2 vs Phase 3 results.
All project resources have been uploaded to PBS LearningMedia so schools and campuses across the country can implement this program.
KLRN will develop preschool lesson plans for integration with early childhood programs and will create activity ideas for parent/family engagement. KLRN is reaching out to local educational institutions (school districts, charter schools, the Witte) to explore opportunities for adoption of the resources. KLRN will also co-create 3-4 modular videos with Gottalook Productions (Introduction to The Healthy Kids Project, Exploring the Project Resources, Highlighting Project Accomplishments, and/or Explaining How People Can Become Involved).
Since February 2016, KLRN has partnered with the United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County to implement the project through a Parent Engagement Support initiative with all agencies who are funded through the Children’s Healthy Issues Council and the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Programs. We will reach 1,600+ children and 1,450+ families through Autism Training Program, Compadre y Compadre, Avance-San Antonio, Parent Talk, Great Start Plus, iParentSA, Parents as Teachers, and Nurse Family Partnership.
About KLRN
KLRN is the Emmy-Award winning Public Television station for South Central Texas broadcasting to a 30-county radius. “The mission of KLRN is to use the power of communications to provide quality programs and services which advance education, culture and community, to enrich the lives of people throughout our community.” KLRN cultivates programs that support the station’s mission and commitment to education. It is this “beyond television” strategy that forms KLRN’s educational outreach model — to prepare children for kindergarten and academic success; to positively impact the quality of care; and to share resources that will enhance classroom instruction.
