Students from the Paul Public Charter School in Washington, D.C., take to the streets pretending to use binoculars in search of their urban forest with a member of the Missoula (Montana) Chlidren's Theatre. The Missoula Children's Theatre works with the U.S. Forest Service to develop interactive, engaging performing arts school assemblies and workshops.

Pop music star Beyonce recently partnered with First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative to create the Let’s Move! Flash Workout. The Oconaluftee Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center in Cherokee, N.C. has embraced the Let’s Move! concept, and launched a Healthy Eating and Active Lifestyles program. Oconaluftee has gotten behind this national movement by producing a student fitness video using the music and choreography of the Let’s Move! Flash Workout. 

In Minnesota, more and more schools are finding that salad bars are a popular way to offer kids a rainbow of healthy foods. “Kids love it. They get to choose what they want and how much. It doesn’t take much to get them onboard,” said Lisa Gemlo, Fruit and Vegetable Coordinator and Farm to School Planner for the Minnesota Department of Health. Lisa is working with the Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools initiative to help schools throughout Minnesota get salad bars and stock them with delicious produce items. From a health standpoint, this is wonderful. “We know that the majority of Minnesota school-aged children do not eat the daily recommended servings of fruit and vegetables. Salad bars provide an easy and proven way to get kids to eat more of these foods. In the end, this builds healthier students who are ready to learn,” said Gemlo.

As refugee families in the United States begin to assimilate into mainstream American culture, their eating habits similarly evolve, reflecting a departure from their traditional customs. The result of this shift can be alarming, as obesity rates and other negative health outcomes soar in these particularly vulnerable communities.