Harney 5th graders had the opportunity to work out with former Super Bowl Champion Mike Prior. Mr. Prior was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1985, played for the Indianapolis Colts from 1987-1992 and then went on to become a part of the Super Bowl Champions Green Bay Packers from 1993-1998. 

Coach Prior worked the students out for 50 minutes doing a variety of exercises to increase muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance and also the importance of stretching. This is all a part of the Fuel up to Play 60 commitment to health and fitness. The Indianapolis Colts are using this program to help combat childhood obesity in Indiana.

The theme of the event was PRIDE, with each letter relating to how you should live your life. (Personal Responsibility In Daily Effort). The students were able to see how PRIDE affected their workout with Coach Prior. During the 50 minute workout students used bands in a variety of ways to work on muscular endurance, bands for muscular strength and jump ropes for cardio vascular endurance.  

At the end of the workout Coach Prior spoke with the students about the importance of playing every day for 60 minutes. He asked questions and rewarded students who answered the questions correctly. One special question asked was rewarded with a signed Indianapolis Colts football. 

One student, Summer Stogsdill had this to say about the workout with Coach Prior, "It was fun and challenging at the same time." Working with the dumbbells were something new to Summer and learning how to use them  helped her to work out with her mom.

FIELD DAY

Field Day for 2014 at Harney Elementary will have a different look. Team Captains from fifth grade will be leading the teams all day long. The Captains were chosen after the third nine weeks with recommendations by teachers and by Mrs. Hammel. Being chosen a Captain comes a great responsibility; being a leader every day and setting an example by modeling great citizenship skills.
 
Each Wednesday morning the Captains meet with Mrs. Hammel and Dr. Yonts to work on leadership skills that will help them not only on field day but throughout life. Through a variety of activities, the students will learn how to: think about choices before they make them, plan ahead, get along with others and use their strengths and talents to solve problems. While learning how to be a better leader, the Captains have done role playing activities such as, What If scenarios to help them prepare for situations that may arise during field day. Captains have also picked the theme and some of the games for Harney's Field Day 2014. All students will be creating their team tie-dye shirt in Art Class for our event.
 
To help with team building the Captains will meet with their teams and do activities that not only include field day events but also will have messages dealing with sportsmanship and bullying. Understanding what it takes to be a good teammate is also something they have been learning about.
 
This experience has shown the 28 Captains that just being a vocal leader doesn't always get the job done, being a good role model and a positive encourager goes a long way when working with their 18 teammates that are all different age, gender, personality, etc. It is also a time for the staff to interact with teams and to build the day around fun, learning, and teamwork.