According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 17% of children and adolescents nationwide are considered obese. In an effort to educate local children on how to take action of their health earlier in life, an eight-month Organwise Guys program was conducted with three Marshall County elementary schools. This curriculum was taught to students ages five to eight in grades Kindergarten through 2nd.

The SNAP-ED assistant visited classrooms in each school once a month. During each visit she taught on a variety of topics such as keeping bones strong, heart health, and the importance of saying no to cigarettes. Each lesson involved stories using the Organwise Guys puppets and engaging students in hands-on activities. At the end of the school year, 79% of students showed increased knowledge and skill in at least one core area, such as identifying healthy fruits and vegetables. One local Family Resource Center Coordinator stated “It is amazing how much these kids learned during this program! When I asked them questions they were able to tell me about the different organs and how to keep them healthy!” The SNAP-ED assistant is hopeful that this program will help local students make healthy choices in their day-to-day lives as they grow.