Last week I had the opportunity to travel to Chicago to participate in the “Namaste Institute”. Namaste is a Health and Wellness charter school in the south west side of Chicago. Their core belief is that a child that is well both physically and emotionally will learn better. If you have followed this blog for a while you will know that this is also my core belief as an educator and personal trainer. As they say, “the proof is in the pudding“, well hopefully low-fat pudding. The school has some of the highest test scores in all of Chicago, and their attendance level is above 90%. My parting thought, and my biggest take away from the experience was, “Inez kids deserve the same kind of education”. They deserve and need more movement throughout the day. My students deserve and need healthier choices for breakfast and lunch. My students deserve to be taught how to maintain their social and emotional wellness. These are things that need to be taught, reinforced, and expected throughout the school community.
So thank you Namaste. Thank you for proving that it can be done. I know it’s an imperfect, difficult, and long process, but I know in the end your goal is to teach “whole children”.
Click the pics to check out “The Namaste Way”
-Mr. Anderson
Inez P.E. 