Children's Program

In the Healthy Children Healthy Futures children's program,
based on the 8 Habits of Healthy Kids™, children learn to become advocates — through their schools, families and communities — for healthy eating and increased physical activity.

Young people are offered a process and a forum to advocate healthy food alternatives and physical activities for their peers primarily through media messaging. The messages, by and for children and in the format of posters, radio, and animated public service announcements (PSAs) are reviewed by peers and then disseminated to large numbers of children through a variety of school-based and community-based networks.

A trained after-school facilitator guides children through the seven basic phases of the Healthy Children Healthy Futures program:

1. Snacks and Physical Activity
2. Getting Started
3. Media Literacy
4. Developing Messages
5. Creating Media
6. Recognition Celebration
7. Parent and Community Participation

Young people who participate in Healthy Children Healthy Futures in after-school settings:

• Learn The 8 Habits of Healthy Kids™ and the skills to incorporate the Habits into their lifestyle.
• Increase their awareness and knowledge of healthy eating and physical activity concepts.
• Work in teams to produce healthy eating and physical activity media including print ads, radio spots, and animation.
• Use program resources to communicate with peers, families, and communities about healthy eating and physical activity.
• Have their efforts and media products recognized in a meaningful way and rewarded.
• Provide parents and family members with the 8 Habits of Healthy Kids™ information.

Children obtain:

• Knowledge, attitudes and skills to make healthier lifestyle choices for themselves.
• Skills to become advocates for healthy eating and physical activity at their schools and in their communities.
• Increased technology awareness and skills through the use of media and animation software.
• Critical thinking skills and practice, through an interdisciplinary approach, at improving their academic performance in language arts, math, technology and media literacy.

Interested in bringing the Healthy Children Healthy Futures program to the after-school programs in your area? Click
For Schools.