Warrior Wellness: Willowbrook physical education, health and driver education departments thank stakeholders for continued support, look forward to another great semester

Pictured is Mike Haussmann, Willowbrook Department Head for physical education, health and driver education.

Willowbrook students hold up "thank you" signs to show their appreciation and support for the Willowbrook physical education, health and driver education departments during this unprecedented and challenging time.

Happy New Year, everyone, and welcome to 2021! I hope this month’s Warrior Wellness column finds you and your family safe and well.

Despite dealing with the negative impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, our students were hard at work last semester. They really pushed through these unprecedented and difficult times, and we are extremely proud of them.

Last semester, we focused on individual wellness and fitness, while still taking time for mindfulness activities and social-emotional well-being. Our students created their own workout plans and used apps such as Flipgrid, Edpuzzle, YouTube and others to stay active and to focus and relax during their busy days.

On the fitness front, 75 percent of our students improved their push-up fitness test by at least 15 percent. Students recorded themselves taking the test with the FitnessGram audio track and on Flipgrid. We used Polar Beat to have students track their running and walking, so they were able to take a break from the computer screen and get outside.

We also were able to deliver our entire health and driver education curriculums. In health, we engaged our students in mental health awareness and informed them about the dangers of alcohol and drug use, communicable and non-communicable diseases and more.

In driver education, students learned about the laws and rules of the road (including the dangers of driving while intoxicated), prepared to earn their learner’s permit and more.

This semester, we will build on our successes. With a full semester of Remote Learning behind us, we will continue to enhance our delivery of instruction. The appreciation we have for our students, parents/guardians and community members during this time cannot be overstated. Thank you for your continued support of District 88 and Willowbrook’s physical education, health and driver education departments. We look forward to another great semester!

• The monthly Warrior Wellness column provides an inside look into the physical education, health and driver education classes at Willowbrook. This feature will highlight what students are working on in class, as well as student successes in those departments.