TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

School program off and running

Staff photo by ANDY JONES

Members of the Bryant Elementary School running club run laps at the school on Monday.

ADVERTISEMENT

By MICHELE SAGER

msager@tampatrib.com

Published: October 14, 2009

WESTCHASE - As Elisa Cimmino rounded the corner, she could see the final Popsicle stick she needed. Huffing past her teacher, the 10-year-old quickly grabbed the stick and kept running, completing her final lap.

Twice a week, the fifth-grader joins classmates from Bryant Elementary in the school's new running club.

Teacher Lois Shell started the club to give the students another outlet to physical fitness and exposure to running.

"There really aren't many opportunities to get elementary students into running," she said. "Then I saw a similar program near Orlando and knew it would be great for our kids."

About 150 students participate in the program. Students meet twice a week after school and run laps in the school's back field. Every lap they complete, they receive a Popsicle stick. Six Popsicle sticks equal a mile. And for every five miles, the students receive a charm to place on a necklace.

As of the Oct. 5, the students completed 10,071 laps, about 1,678 miles. That's long enough to run from Tampa to Richmond, Va., and back.

"We chart the completed laps each week and it allows them to see their progress," Shell said.

Fifth-grader Taylor Williams said she has developed a love for running.

"I didn't really do it before the club," she said. "But now I really like it and want to do more running at home."

Shell said she would like to see the program expand to other elementary schools and eventually have the student compete in meets. She is also looking to train her students to run a professional race later in the school year.

Reporter Michele Sager can be reached at (727) 451-2344.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT