MANNING – Manning Elementary School has been selected as an All-Health Team winner for its Monarch Cloggers project, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced today.
“Clogging is a fun way to exercise,” said Brandi O’Quinn, language arts and social studies teacher at Manning Elementary. “I’ve been clogging for 13 years and thought that it would be a great thing to teach the children. The hope is that clogging will improve the overall wellness for the students and improve their quality of life.
“We currently have 26 fourth graders involved in the program,” she said. “There are plans to train other teachers how to clog so that more students can be accommodated. The group meets every Thursday for 45 minutes to practice dance routines.”
According to O’Quinn, the cloggers learn about living a healthy lifestyle through healthy nutrition and exercise. They appear on their morning show and create posters to spread the message. Plans are underway to perform at community events and PTA meetings. There are also plans to place brochures in businesses, which promote healthy lifestyles.
For being named to the All-Health Team, Manning Elementary’s Monarch Cloggers project will receive a $500 grant, t-shirts and other All-Health Team items, recognition on the All-Health Team Web site and a television spot on WIS-TV in Columbia.
DHEC and WIS-TV sponsor the All-Health Team. Each month, the partnership recognizes an individual or youth group promoting health in their community. For more information, visit the All-Health Team Web site at: http://www.scdhec.gov/allhealth, call Joann Moton Minder at (803) 545-4501 or e-mail her at minderjm@dhec.sc.gov.