by BTA correspondent John McLaren
There may be nothing like a good walk to get a school kid’s day off and running. Bill Tomlinson, a school nurse, is putting that advice into practice at the James John Elementary School where he has been leading 100 kids or more on group walks to school.
Tomlinson, who works at three other schools in addition to James John, organized a school wellness committee to respond to a need he saw at James John and schools in general for “opportunities for more exercise and better nutrition.â€
His concern is shared by many. Walking or biking are missed opportunities for many children. Roughly 10 percent of children nationwide walk to school regularly, and only 2 percent regularly bike to school. Even among those kids living within a mile of their school, only 25 percent are regular walkers. This is far below the 60 percent who walked or biked to school in the 1970s.
Tomlinson staged the third of his current series of group walks for James John students and staff on April 20. The walkers gathered at the St. John’s Community Center Park about three blocks from the school. Most arrived by foot at the park from their homes. Fourth grade teachers helped organize the large group on a beautiful sunny morning.
Tomlinson, a registered nurse employed by the Department of School Health Services within the Multnomah Education Service District, took the initiative in promoting the James John walk as part of a larger Wellness campaign at the school. Tomlinson also works with the HEAL (Healthy Eating, Active Living) coalition at Clarendon school to promote healthy lifestyles for students and their families.
While Tomlinson is an “avid” cyclist, pedaling about 20 miles a day from his home on Sauvie Island to and from the four St. Johns schools on his rounds, he hasn’t made bicycling a big part of his work with the schools.
At James John, walking to better health was talked-up at school assemblies and by individual teachers in their classes, in response to suggestions from the school’s wellness committee. Students also can participate in the “Pride Striders,” a noon recess period running club.
Tomlinson says the organized walks help make kids more aware of traffic and healthier. Walking and other exercise also helps buck the national trend toward childhood obesity. Currently, according to a University of California study, approximately 9 million children over the age of 6 are obese and 15 percent are at risk of becoming overweight.
