More About the Generation FIT Vending Program
How does this program work?
Once you have a dance mat station at your school, students can enjoy managing it as a part time fund-raising/business management opportunity. Depending on the age and abilities of your students, you can provide a vast array of programs. At the most basic, if students already run a book store, snack or other food sale at school, selling time and tokens for an interactive dance video game is easy.
For schools that purchase Generation FIT staff development and our online subscription package, we provide grade-appropriate “Game Vendor” tools. From systems and procedures that allow students to manage sales, bookkeeping, orderly turns on the dance stations and income for the school, our online tools provide a turn-key business opportunity.
The Basics : Most schools create a form of tokens that students can buy for 50 cents. Each token would allow a student to play 2-3 songs. Lunch or snack time, even during recess and after school when other sales are already going on, is a perfect time to let your dance game vendor/managers go to work. Share the station among various lunch or recess periods.
Why Add a Dance Video Game? You will be doing a lot more for your students than providing a funding source for the Generation FIT program. You will be providing the healthiest options - more movement and movement fun instead of a snack, with lots of real-life work skills built in. This is a challenging issue for our nation - and
Generation FIT is an easy solution.
Why spend money on stickers or pizza parties?
Middle and high school students often manage a “reward/incentive” program for teachers. They provide time on the dance mat for students who meet
academic or attendance goals. Instead of using budget dollars for extrinsic rewards like pizza or ice cream, schools can invest in
a popular activity that provides fitness and academic skills. In elementary and middle school settings, parties for a small
group or an entire class can be arranged with just one dance mat station (two mats). Suddenly the purchase of a dance video game is
a way to help your incentive budget go a long way – and a long way toward improving both fitness and academic success.
(Research and ExerLearning)
Why the Generation FIT Vending Program is POWERFUL!
This dilemma begs the question : Why not simply change the food offered in a vending machine?
Many interviews with students in grades 6-12 have pointed to the following surprising fact: Food is often purchased as a diversion, one of the view ways students can "buy something" while at school. When asked, "If you had a choice of buying time on the dance mat game or buying cookies after lunch, which would you buy?" Most eagerly agreed - "We want the dance game! We'd buy time on the dance video game."
Best of all, when you have a Generation FIT program in your school, students can actually provide the funding for more stations. By investing in two or more dance mat stations per grade, most schools can generate the cost back in sales in a few months. For the remainder of the time the interactive dance video game station is in place, all profit goes to the school - and satisfaction, service and self-worth reward the students. Imagine the students in your school who would benefit from this sort of program!
here is a great deal of funding available for projects like this in School-to-Work,
Service Learning , Title I and funds for special needs or at-risk students. Title II will provide funds to train teachers to start this valuable program.
Beyond the School -
Community Outreach: Learn about how your
students can gain strong community partners while
leading healthy change in local workplaces.
For more information, just drop us an e-mail: info@generation-fit.com
|
