BrightSTARS -- Tennis for Me! at Mountain View Elementary

Mountain View (formerly known as Cale) Elementary was the seventh school to adopt the BrightSTARS - Tennis for Me! tennis and nutrition immersion format. The initial, introductory Go Bananas! visit to the Virginia Preschool Initiative (VPI) classes at Cale Elementary in April 2017 to assess interest in the program was a BIG HIT! The kids participated in some movement activities and received Go Bananas! bracelets, Go Bananas! poster cards, cards for Bananas, Carrots and Brush & Floss and a photo of the national champion UVa Men's Tennis team. After the visit, the teachers wanted to start BrightSTARS -- Tennis for Me! immediately, so two sessions were scheduled for May.

There are two VPI preschool classrooms and one Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) class at Cale with a total of 48 students. The school is overcrowded (700 kids) and physical resources are stretched, so we had to make do with the breezeway outside the cafeteria. No problem! That is the wonderful thing about the QuickStart Tennis format. It can be adapted to use anywhere for any kid.

Cale received kid-sized equipment (racquets, squishy balls, foam balls, cones and a portable net), all neatly packed up in two plastic bins. We give each school their own equipment so they will be able to let kids play between sessions. We encourage spontaneous play and experimentation. QuickStart Tennis is meant to be FUN!

For the 2019/2020 school year, we partnered with preschool teacher Coco Sawyer and provided funding for her to purchase "bargain books" each month for her students from the Scholastic Book Club to read in class and then take home. This pilot was so successful that we soon funded similar programs at Greer and Stone-Robinson Elementary Schools. Having age-appropriate books in the home is the #1 factor in the acquisition of reading skills. Combining the FUN of tennis and Go Bananas! with reading engages kids and helps them develop a life skill that will serve them for a lifetime. Want to be a great adult? Play tennis! Eat healthy! Read books! Have FUN!!! Be a QuickStart kid!

Initial Go Bananas! Visit in 2017 - Bananas, Carrots and Brush & Floss




First Outdoor Session -- Apples, Broccoli and Reading


Second Outdoor Session -- Watermelon, Spinach and Manners . . . and a Go Bananas! poster




 

 Want to be a great adult? Be a QuickStart kid!

First Session -- 2017/2018 School Year
Bananas & Apples

Ms. Pahis-Mastakas classroom - they were ready to learn and have FUN!


Ms. Fritz's classroom -- very good listeners

Lots of Apple Artwork this time of year

Second Session -- 2017/2018 School Year
Carrots, Cauliflower & Brush & Floss

So busy teaching today, I didn't have time for many photos . . .

  Session #3 -- Peaches, Mangoes and Milk


They couldn't wait to show us their healthy morning snack.

Red Light/Green Light

Going Bananas! for peaches, mangoes and milk!

More Going Bananas!

For more photos, visit our Facebook page -- QSCentral