• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Food for Thought: KEY Academy 7th Graders Teach Parents About Healthy Eating Using mimio(R) Interactive Teaching Technology

Posted on: Thursday, 30 July 2009, 08:33 CDT

WASHINGTON, July 30 /PRNewswire/ -- On July 30th, seventh grade students from the KEY Academy public charter school in southeast Washington DC will host a healthy breakfast for their parents, community members, government officials and the White House Assistant chef where they will present what they have learned in summer school about food and nutrition. mimio, a creator of interactive teaching technology, has partnered with the KEY Academy to equip and train the classes on how to produce and share interactive, multimedia-based presentations and lesson plans. Special guests will include White House Assistant Chef Sam Kass, USDA Deputy Under Secretary Janey Thorton, and DC Department of Health Chief Michele Tingling-Clemmons.

The KEY Academy is a public charter school that is part of the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP), a network of free, open-enrollment college preparatory public schools in under-resourced communities throughout the United States.

"We are very pleased to support the KEY Academy and its talented students, who can now serve as nutrition ambassadors to their families and communities," said Mel Jackson, general manager of mimio. "Now, these teachers can bring important lessons to life and the students can experience learning in an engaging and fun way, through active involvement and participation with the teacher."

"The issues of food, nutrition, health and education go hand-in-hand," said Bob Gierschick, mimio Senior Marketing manager. "Students involved in this special project have a vested interest in both the outcome of their presentations as well as their personal health. What these children create in their sessions will have a positive influence on their eating and health habits well into their adult years and we are excited to help foster that learning."

In a unique, three-week interdisciplinary summer school session, KEY Academy 7th graders focused on how to make informed nutritional choices and studied the importance of healthy eating. In Social Studies, students examined the role of food in the Americas while in Science they focused on the digestive system. In English, students created works based on the book Chew on This and in Math, they focused on energy and caloric intake. Teachers and students used mimio Interactive and Ink Capture systems and mimio Pads to produce tailored lessons and presentations in each subject area.

"We all struggle with making good decisions about food and nutrition, so we really wanted to make sure our kids were well prepared with the right information. Through the use of mimio technology, the students were involved in the research and animation of the lessons themselves, making it a hands-on experience and one they are sure to remember," said David Ayala, Principal KEY Academy/KIPP DC school. "We are grateful for the partnership with mimio as now, our students and teachers have better tools to exercise their talents."

As part of their new partnership, mimio equipped several classrooms with a full complement of mimio Interactive products and provided hands-on training for the teachers from mimio masters, teachers that have gone through mimio's full training program. 3M also donated and installed SCP 712 short-throw projectors and Discovery Education streaming and Discovery Education Health services.

Discovery Education streaming is the only digital video-based learning resource scientifically proven to increase academic achievement, offering teachers and students the largest, high-quality educational video library available in schools today. Discovery Education streaming is searchable by keyword, content area and grade level and contains over 9,000 videos segmented into 71,000 content-specific clips aligned to state academic and testing standards. Discovery Education Health is a comprehensive, online, K-12 health and prevention library that covers a variety of critical topic areas such as Physical Activity, Mental Health, Alcohol and other drugs, Safety, Nutrition, the Body and Growth and Development.

For more information on mimio, please visit www.mimio.com, follow mimio on Twitter, @mimiotechnology and via Facebook.

About Newell Rubbermaid Technology Global Business Solutions

In a world that demands greater productivity and measures it at every opportunity, Newell Rubbermaid's global technology solutions provide businesses, educational institutions, and consumers with innovative and easy ways to share, manage and organize information with improved efficiency and satisfaction. Our global technology brands are organized into four solutions:

• DYMO(R) Printing and Labeling Solutions are comprised of DYMO label makers and label printers, postage printing and CD/DVD printing solutions (www.dymo.com).
• CardScan(R) Contact Management Solutions are comprised of CardScan business card scanners and contact management software featuring CardScan At Your Service(TM) (www.cardscan.com), and DYMO File(TM) software for document scanning into digital files (www.dymofile.com).
• Endicia(R) Internet Postage Solutions are comprised of Endicia online shipping and mailing solutions (www.endicia.com) as well as customized postage solutions (www.pictureitpostage.com).
• mimio(R) Interactive Teaching Solutions are comprised of mimio interactive whiteboard technology, digital ink recorders and student response systems (www.mimio.com).
• These global technology brands complement the growing family of leading Newell Rubbermaid brands including Calphalon(R), EXPO(R), Goody(R), Graco(R), Irwin(R), Lenox(R), Paper Mate(R), Parker(R), Rolodex(R), Rubbermaid(R), Sharpie(R) and Waterman(R).
  

About KEY Academy/KIPP

KIPP DC: KEY Academy (Knowledge Empowers You) provides an innovative and academically rigorous college preparatory program to 320 fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grade students in Southeast Washington, D.C. The school's mission is to prepare students with the academic, intellectual, and character skills necessary for success in high school, college, and the competitive world beyond.

Media Contact Heather Himes, Ketchum, 214.259.3438 Heather.himes@ketchum.com

SOURCE mimio

Source: PR Newswire

More News in this Category