Shared by Vicki Barron
Submitted by Program Specialist, Karina Villaseñor
I teach children with special needs Kindergarten – 3rd grades, and here is my 100 Mile Club story 😊
While planning a health unit, my assistant suggested we take the children out to walk a mile every day. She had previously done that with a class in another school. I really didn’t think our young students would be able to focus or be interested in walking 4 laps around our PE field. So we began by setting rules for how to walk with our friends. We then made a “cool “incentive by adding 1 mile each day to our chart while eating popsicles, (it gets hot in Florida!), and celebrating our 100 mile goal by walking to McDonalds for ice cream! We started this 13 years ago and we’re still walking 100 miles every year! My students love it!!
I have found that as we walk laps, this is a time that the children love to start talking! They have my undivided attention for one mile to listen to them, laugh with them, and sometimes even counsel them.
Some of the teachers at our school spoke of wanting to start a running club but was unsure how to start. I went looking online to see what I could find and that’s how I found out about the 100 Mile Club. I signed my class up to start with this year to see how the program works, and I’m so excited to share this program with the whole school! The (100 Mile Club) staff is very helpful and easy to talk with, and it is so easy to order the fun incentive packages! My students love the bracelets, t-shirts, and especially the medals!
As one student said, “They’re real!!”
I look forward to becoming more involved and learning more from other coaches and schools. Thank you 100 Mile Club for your wonderful program!
Sincerely,
Vicki Barron
Thanks for being part of the 100 Mile Club Family, Vicki! We look forward to many more years of miles and sMILES! ❤️
