Instructions for implementing JUST RUN/Program Advice

Getting Started: A great example of how to start the JUST RUN program is La Mesa Elementary School in Monterey. Two dedicated and enthusiastic moms, Julie Lemmon and Jefanna Tipton decided to take the idea to the school administration and met with a very supportive principal. They then sent a flyer out to all grades and the one flyer plus word of mouth resulted in 50 children participating in their after school program.

Meetings: They decided to start by meeting one day a week on Mondays at 3:15 for an hour. They hope to increase the days later.

The Course: The moms measured and layed out a 1 mile course around a park near La Mesa Elementary school and put out cones to mark every 10th of a mile.

Separating into Groups: There are children from Kindergarten up through 6th grade and at the first session, based on ability, there were 4 running groups formed. They are mostly based on age but there are some younger kids that run with and keep up with faster groups.

Stretching... MORE>>

Advice from a successful program - Roosevelt Elementary

Coach Shawna Gunwall of Roosevelt Elementary School in Salinas gives the following advice.

The kids really enjoyed running and the running program and usually kept their enthusiasm up by themselves. I only did a few things that seemed to keep them motivated and a bit surprised. Once every couple of weeks I would mix things up on the track by making them go the opposite direction than usual.

To keep track of their laps I would use a washable marker and "dot" the top of their hands until they completed all the laps required for that day. They seemed to like markers that had letters or numbers on them.

We also had the children and parents sign a "contract" stating that they could only miss so many practices or they would be dropped from the team. We had our own team shirt made and I didn't actually drop any child for missed practices, but I did not give them a team shirt if they missed too many practices.

On days that were particularly hot one of the moms brought a couple of... MORE>>

Advice from Hershey's Fast Track to Sports

Hersheys Fast Track to Sports is a program developed by experts in Track and Field. Hersheys supports local track and field competitions that included 400,000 youth and a National Competition each year with 550 of the fastest youth runners and jumpers. Look at www.hersheystrackandfield.comfor more information.

The Hershey's program provides some great advice:

1. Emphasize FUNdamentals - make your programs fun.

2. Record each child's times and distances so they can see as the program continues how much farther and faster they have run as they get in shape.

3. Reward children based on improvement as well as speed.

4. Make sure kids know that running, jumping, stretching all help them in other sports.

5. Emphasize safety; make sure where you run is free of debris, kids have shoe laces tied, are wearing appropriate footwear, and that they run with their eyes and heads up so they don't run into any other children.

Each session should include the following structure:

1. Introduction - let the children know what they will be doing today and why.

2. Warm up - stretching and light running.

3. Skills and Drills - use a variety.

4. FUNdamentals - make it fun and correct their form and posture as they run.

5. Cool down/warm down - stretching and light ru

ir form and posture as they run.

5. Cool down/warm down - stretching and light running even slower than during warm up.

6. Conclusion - let them tell you what they learned.

Counting Laps - more ideas

Many schools use different methods for counting laps around the field or the track. Here are a few.

1. Use rubber stamps of various designs or animals or numbers and each time a child comes around they get a rubber stamp on their hand or arm.

2. Different color popsicle sticks. The kids have to hold them but they enjoy this. Provide a different color stick each time around.

3. Beans and Bags. The students run with little bags and each time around are given a small bean or penny that goes into their bags. At the end they count their laps this way.

Drill packages using stuffed animals

One great idea for doing the Drill packages and relay races that are described in this website and can be downloaded in the download forms section is to use Stuffed Animals rather than soccer balls.

The children really enjoy this one. Instead of using soccer balls or cones to run over and around, use stuffed animals instead. Teddy Bears, the Bigger Beanie Babies, or other types of unique items are great for running around and through while doing relays and agility type exercises.

Excuses kids will use and how to deal with them

Brandon Currie, CSUMB Service Learner, and volunteer at Marina Vista School offers the following observations.

It would be great if every child immediately loved to run but realistically some kids will do whatever they can to get out of running. The most common excuses are the following:

1. Some simply say that they have to go to the bathroom.
You’re obviously not going to tell a child that they can’t go, so you let and two minutes later you notice them playing on the play ground somewhere else. Best bet is to deal with this directly and get the child and bring them back to the running area. If you can't leave then send another child running over to get them

2. Some kids will fake injuries.
Kids tend to fake injuries. They will come up to you and say they twisted their ankle and can’t run anymore. School policy is to send them to the school nurse. They do an academy award limping act over to the nurse's office but five minutes later they run out of the nurse’s... MORE>>

FUNDRAISER FORM - Healthy Fundraising

JUST RUN is a great program to use for a healthy fundraiser for your school or youth organization. In the DOWNLOAD FORMS section of the JUST RUN website are fundraising forms in both English and Spanish that can be used for this purpose.

This healthy fundraiser is approved by the STEPS for a Healthier Salinas Organization and the Monterey County Health Department.

The forms can be modified for your school or organizations use. Students then take the forms to family, friends, and businesses and receive pledges for miles run by each student.

We also suggest trying to get businesses to sponsor your school or organization by "matching" donations that are collected.

Your students RUN and have healthy activity AND your school or youth organization earns money.

Incentive awards program

Incentive awards for participating children in grades K – 8. A Mile Marker chart, bookmark, and plastic foot will be provided when they begin the program, followed by mileage tokens when they reach their goals of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50, 75, and 100 miles. The children receive wristbands when the reach accumulated mileage of 26, 50, 75, and 100.

Certificates of CONGRATULATIONS for those accumulating 26 miles of running/walking and performing 26 “JUST DEEDS,” and Shirt awards for those accumulating 50 miles of activity and doing 26 "JUST DEEDS", which are acts of good citizenship or good deeds.

Incentives for high school programs: Students will receive Be A Champion card from Running USA when they begin. When they reach 25 miles they will receive GO FOR THE GOLD JUST RUN shoe laces, followed by a JUST RUN shirt at the 50-mile mark and an entry for the Big Sur International Marathon’s 5K or the Run Forrest Run 5K when they accumulate 100 miles

JUST RUN Bulletin Board

Stephanie Fournier, the Just Run coordinator at La Mesa School, created a JUST RUN bulletin board in a prominent location in the hallway of her school. She used JUST RUN mileage markers and printed them off in color for 25, 50, 75, and 100 miles. These were posted on the bulletin board along with lists of children that achieved those mileage goals. This is a great motivator and gives recognition to all the children that reach mileage goals.

JUST RUN Bulletin Board

Managing of group of more than 40 children

Annie Hanshew, a student at CSUMB, and one of our experienced after school JUST RUN leaders, offers the following advice to anyone who has a JUST RUN group in excess of 40 children.

The ideal size for a JUST RUN group is 30 to 40 children. The primary reason is not control and discipline, but any larger group will get across the country in the JUST RUN across the USA program too quickly. It is best to split up groups at a school either by grade level or ability level. Natural competition develops between the groups which promotes fun as well as motivation. You can also provide individual attention to each child when you know them and their habits and ability levels. This becomes more difficult as the group gets too large.

Unavoidably, if you are left to handle a large group of over 40 by yourself, it is imperative you try to find a parent, teacher, administrator, or friend, who can help you. It can get chaotic without another leader or assistant, but it is possible to handle a large group by yourself.

Structure is key for any group but even more for a large one. Plan the activities in advance and hand out a schedule or post the schedule on a chalk board for each activity session. Then everyone knows what to expect in advance. You can even use the more mature children as small group leaders in order to keep structure and make sure each child has a supervisor and help.

When doing laps I would place a sticker for each lap on each child so I could keep track of their laps. They enjoyed stickers and often asked to run more than a mile. Even if they have to wait momentarily each lap to get their sticker it gave them motivation and kept them running. I used Tuesday and Thursday as "lap" days and had the children build up the number of laps they could do over time.

I used Monday, Wednesday, and Friday as activity days. To start activity days the kids would take a slow warm-up lap around the field then spread out in a circle for stretching. I used students to help lead the stretching routines. When we were nicely stretched, we would then split them into groups in accordance with the activity planned for that day.

The children really enjoyed the JUST RUN relays and drills so we organized a variety. They would be split up in even groups, according to age; each group would have a variety of ages, so the groups were as even as possible. I or another student would then give an example of what needed to be done in the relay. Children need examples otherwise they will not fully understand how to do it and will perform the task differently than the others. We put older kids in the front of each line because they have more of an understanding and were example for the others in line.

Motivation is another big aspect to their success. Encourage them the whole way through; other kids will catch your energy and encourage too. I suggest keeping the same teams for a few games and see how they progress. The kids really enjoyed jumping and going around things. We used small dodge balls, soccer balls, and cones. We also had them circle around leaders because they seemed more encouraged; a leader is more fun than a cone. As each child finishes have them raise their arms so you know when their whole group is done. The kids always wanted to do another relay so they could do better than before.

Dealing with a big group isn’t always hard. It can be accomplished with structure and a positive atmosphere.

Measuring your running course - the distance wheel

If you have a running route around the school yard or on trails that you want to measure in a reasonably accurate way the Big Sur Marathon has purchased a Distance Wheel Measuring device for the JUST RUN program that you can borrow. These are easy to use and provide a way to measure any running distances that are not on the track. Call Sally Smith or Chris Balog at 625-8226 to make arrangements

Also in the forms section is a form that can be used as "mile markers" with the JUST RUN logo. You can use the form to print whatever distance you like: 1/4, 1/2, 5/8, 1, 2, etc. and a nice distance marker prints out. The distance markers can be used to pin on trees or stakes on your running route. Or you can make them more permanent by putting them on boards that you use.

Outside Monterey County?

The JUST RUN® program was developed so that it could be easily implemented in any locale by any teacher or leader. Once we receive your information on the Volunteer Application, found in the FORMS section, you will able to add children, record mileage, and get your program "up and running!" However, due to financial constraints, we are unable to provide free incentives. For more information please contact Susan Love at susanwlove@sbcglobal.net or call 831.625.6226.

Recording mileage for running across the USA and Europe

1. Mileage should be credited for those in the program based on actual mileage run and/or walked. Biking and other sports do not count!
2. Mileage a child runs with their parents may be counted as double; this encourages families to run together.
3. Record mileage in increments starting with 1/4 mile and up. Regularly update the information on the website.
4. On days where you do drills, rather than lap or track running/walking, estimate the amount of distance that a child probably covered in the workout. A good guide is one mile for each 15 minutes of uninterrupted relays and/or drills.
5. For unsupervised mileage, unless a child's recorded mileage is highly unlikely, accept it as true and enter the data on the website. (Children are requested to have a parent's initials on their log sheets for miles accumulated outside of your observation.)

HOW TO ADD CHILDREN TO YOUR GROUP

A. GO TO www.justrun.org
B. ON THE LEFT SIDE CLICK ON "JUST RUN ACROSS THE USA." C. IN THE BLUE BOX SEARCH FOR YOUR SCHOOL OR GROUP AND ENTER YOUR PASSWORD.
D. CLICK ON ADD/CHANGE CHILDREN ON THE ADMINISTRATORS PAGE.
E. IN THE UPPER RIGHT IT WILL SAY "ADD CHILD, "CLICK ON THAT.
F. YOU WILL SEE THE SCREEN FOR ADDING CHILDREN.
G.... MORE>>

Running in the morning - good way to start the day

Kamann School in Salinas makes a point of starting the day with the JUST RUN program. There are many benefits for this. The children usually start the day by being social with their friends. Its a healthy way for the children to complete their social talk on a nice run, rather than waiting and using valuable classroom time.

The teachers have also found that the early run "slows down" those children that are hyperactive and exciteable and makes them ready to concentrate when the enter the classroom.

The early morning run makes the children more energetic and capable of concentrating on school as well in their early classes.

Just like adults, Kamann students, comment that they miss their morning run when for some reason they cannot do it.

Sample introductory letters to go home

Many new group leaders asked for sample letters that could be sent home, one to introduce the program to the children and their parents and the other to welcome the participants and to give specific information to the parents.

These sample letters are in the Download Forms section of this website. You may download them and make changes to reflect your relevant information. Or you may simply use them to get ideas to write your own unique letter.

Structure of your program based on days per week

Many leaders ask the best basic structure for your program based on the number of days you have for the JUST RUN program. We recommend you always start and end with stretching. We recommend you always encourage children to run or walk with their parents on weekends.

If your program is ONE day a week:
1/2 the time should be drills/relays/races
1/2 the time shoud be endurance based - running longer each week.

If your program is TWO days per week:
1 day should be drills/relays/races
1 day should be endurance based - running longer each week.

If your program is Three days per week:
2 days should be drills/relays/races
1 day should be endurance based - running longer each week.

If your program is Four days per week:
2 days should be drills/relays/races
2 days should be endurance based - running longer each week.

If your program is Five days per week:
3 days should be drills/relays/races
2 days should be endurance based - running longer each week.

Student contract

We recommend having all participants in your program fill out the STUDENT/Parent/Leader JUST RUN contract. This helps with parent involvement and has each child agree to particpate in the program and work on improving their fitness and nutritional habits. Each Child should keep this contract.

Welcome to the JUST RUN program

Welcome to the JUST RUN program. We are extremely grateful for your participation and enthusiasm for the program. It is your enthusiasm and committment that will insure success.

PHILOSOPHY: The name JUST RUN epitomizes our guiding principles: ACTIVITY, FUN and SIMPLICITY. We all just want to get the children RUNNING or WALKING or MOVING on a regular basis and the JUST RUN program provides the tools to make this happen.

GETTING STARTED:
1. Talk to school or organization leadership to insure there is support for the program.
2. Find a suitable location and facilities and times either during school or after school to hold group meetings and runs.
3. We recommend measuring a 1/2 mile distance either around a field or school yard, or use the track. It does not have to be flat area or even regular - obstacles add to the fun and variety. You can download and create your own JUST RUN distance markers at this website. The distance markers can be put on cardboard or wood and put... MORE>>

What JUST RUN provides and what is expected of you

Please visit the Program Description section of this website where JUST RUNs benefits/features and requirements are provided.