Keisha wants to join her school track team, but poor eating and
exercise habits may prevent her from having the energy and stamina
she needs to be successful. With the advice and support of friends
and family members, Keisha learns how better nutrition combined
with a variety of exercise routines leads to success.
“Getting on Track,” is the brainchild of a group
of middle and high school students who worked daily this summer
with Caree Jackson, a doctoral student in the foods and nutrition
department of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, learning
both about good nutrition and how to channel their knowledge
into a play they performed for family and friends in late June.
Jackson’s project was one of several that occurred at Camp
Summer Spree Horizons, a four-week camp hosted by founder Becky
Lockman at her Oconee County home. The camp is in its third year
and provides four weeks of fun and learning for 30 low-income
adolescents between the ages of 10 and 15.
The campers rotated through a series of activities each day,
including Jackson’s, allowing them to work in small groups
of five. She spent about 40 minutes a day with each group.
“We would make healthy snacks from simple recipes they
could take home. We also had games that involved reading the
labels on foods and talking about things like how much fat or
fiber a honey bun has compared to a granola bar and why that
matters,” Jackson said. “We also did physical activities.
One week the kids learned hip-hop dance and another we did circuit
training that including jumping jacks, running and jump roping.
The important thing was for them to learn that it’s easy
to include exercise and good nutrition in your schedule.”
But beyond the lessons, Jackson also taught the campers about
script-writing.
“We started out reading scripts that were already written,” Jackson
said. “They loved doing that.”
Then, they began using short scenarios provided by Jackson to
develop their own play.
“Adolescents need structure to get started, so I would
create a scenario of two or three sentences for them to build
a scene around,” she explained.
Jackson also took notes.
“It’s hard to get adolescents to actually write down
dialog,” she said. “So, I would write it down for
them. What was interesting was how surprised they were when they
realized they had done the work, that they were the writers,
I had just written down what they said. A lot of times, adolescents
think writing is hard. I think this showed them that it doesn’t
have to be.”
Competing
in a Global Economy
The University of Georgia is at the forefront of the globalization
movement in higher education with a wealth of opportunities for
international experiences. Our students are flocking to study-abroad
programs, thriving on the challenges inherent in confronting a
new cultural environment. More and more, students on campus are
also making choices that reflect an understanding of the importance
of global awareness—from living in a residence hall-based
language community to starting a radio program in another language
to minoring in a foreign language. These experiences, whether at
home or abroad, influence how our students perceive the world and
their place in it. We’re producing graduates prepared to
be world citizens—well informed, culturally sensitive and
technologically sophisticated. They’re ready to take on the
challenges of our global society, and they’ll be equally
at home whether in the Peach State or the Republic of Georgia. |
Campers
at Camp Summer Spree Horizons perform "Getting on Track," a
play they wrote about nutrition and exercise.
