Healthy days at Scoil Aonghusa
RECENTLY, the third and fourth class pupils at Scoil Aonghusa had great fun taking part in a Gaelic football blitz at Carrigoon organised by Pat Spratt, GDA for Avondhu/Duhallow.
They wore their new school jerseys for the first time at the football blitz - the jerseys were provided by the school’s Parents Association. The pupils have after-school football training every Wednesday and will start swimming and basketball lessons later in the year.
The school is a health promoting and active school, and pupil representatives have been elected to the health promotion committee this week. The health promotion committee is made up of pupil representatives from first to sixth class and they aim to help improve the health of all the pupils by involving them in planned physical and well-being activities.
A number of scientific studies have shown the benefits of physical exercise to the physical health and psychological well being of children. It also helps develop a child’s motor skills and improves their co-ordination.
Children learn better and have better attention levels when they are fit and healthy. Research at NatCen Social Research at Newcastle University found that the sense of achievement that a child feels when they do well at sports also helps them to achieve higher grades in mathematics.
On hearing about the health promotion programmes at Scoil Aonghusa, world renowned leading paediatrician Dr Alan Greene commented “Kids are designed with energy to burn for a reason. I believe that most children thrive with about two hours of moderate to high-intensity activity daily.”