Preschoolers Flex for Fitness with Nationwide Jumping Jack Jam

Preschoolers Flex for Fitness with Nationwide Jumping Jack Jam 

Grow Fit Makes Every Healthy Choice Count at Learning Care Group

OCEANSIDE, Calif., Nov. 13, 2014 – Ready, set, jump! Learning Care Group schools are rallying in the name of fun and fitness today with a Jumping Jack Jam. Children and teachers at Childtime, Tutor Time, The Children’s Courtyard, La Petite Academy and Montessori Unlimited schools nationwide are doing their part to help rack up a one-day grand total of 1 million jumping jacks. The fall fitness blitz marks the anniversary of Grow Fit, the company’s comprehensive healthy lifestyle initiative.

Sportacus and Stephanie – the super-fit and super-active healthy heroes of the award winning “LazyTown” series on NBC and Sprout – will add even more excitement to the festivities as they join children, teachers and families at La Petite Academy in Oceanside, Calif., to celebrate the latest Grow Fit milestone.

A Healthy Foundation for the Future 

Now beginning its third year, Learning Care Group’s Grow Fit provides a clearly defined structure for nutrition and physical fitness at more than 900 schools nationwide. The program has become part of school culture through wholesome meals, curricular activities that emphasize movement and fun special events such as today’s Jumping Jack Jam.

“With Grow Fit, we’re giving children the foundation for a lifetime of healthy habits,” said Learning Care Group CEO Barbara Beck. “We’ve prioritized balanced nutrition and daily physical activity to ensure our children have the energy to learn, and to position them for future success.”

In February, Learning Care Group reaffirmed its dedication to providing a healthy environment for the children in its care by joining the Partnership for a Healthier America and committing to meet the Let’s Move! Child Care standards.

Recipe for Good Health 

At every Learning Care Group school, healthy nutrition habits are emphasized with each meal – including the importance of drinking water and following appropriate portion sizes.  Developed by the company’s registered dietician nutritionist, the well-balanced menu offers more than 50 different fruits and vegetables, along with lean proteins and whole grain products. Fried foods have been completely eliminated.

Children are expanding their palates through a variety of nutritious foods, including many multi-cultural items. Offerings such as turkey tacos, Waldorf fruit salad, chicken corn chowder, and hummus (chickpea dip) with baked pita chips have become favorites. The fall/winter menu includes new entrees such as chicken tikka masala, turkey cranberry pizza, and beany enchilada casserole, along with winter squash soup, baked sweet potatoes and apples, and other delectable seasonal treats.

Just as with the Jumping Jack Jam, the Grow Fit Daily Dance Break and other physical activities, when it comes to wellness, every healthy step adds up. In just one year, Learning Care Group has cut the equivalent of five semi trucks worth of sugar from children’s meals by serving more water and reducing the amount of juice. The switch from a breaded and fried nugget to a grilled chicken nugget has eliminated more than a ton of fat in a single year – comparable to the weight of a small car. Over the past year, children at Learning Care Group schools have been served 1.46 million cups of whole grain pasta – enough to feed all of the in-stadium spectators at the Rose Bowl (crowd of approximately 90,000) a cup of pasta for the next 15 years.

For more information, please visit:  www.childtime.com , www.tutortime.com , www.childrenscourtyard.com ,   www.lapetite.com and www.montessori.com. Check out Learning Care Group’s Grow Fit program in action.

Contact: 

Lydia Cisaruk

Director of Communications, Learning Care Group

(248) 697-9140

lcisaruk@learningcaregroup.com

About Learning Care Group, Inc.

Headquartered in Novi, Mich., Learning Care Group provides early education and child care services to children ages 6 weeks to 13 years within its portfolio of brands:  The Children’s Courtyard, Childtime Learning Centers, La Petite Academy, Montessori Unlimited and Tutor Time Child Care/Learning Centers.  Learning Care Group operates more than 900 schools (corporate and franchise) across 36 states, the District of Columbia and internationally, and has a system-wide capacity to serve more than 100,000 children. For more information, please visit www.learningcaregroup.com