Learners from Mokone Primary School in Langa jumped, skipped and played to their hearts when Sporting Chance and The Walt Disney Company Africa hosted their Disney Happy Healthy Play Programme recently.
To empower under-resourced schools to embed physical education into their curriculums, the programme – now in its eighth year – provides fun and creative tools for educators and students using Disney characters and stories as inspiration for leading a healthy and active lifestyle. Disney Healthy Happy Play aims to reach 42 schools and 30 000 learners in four provinces by the end of 2023, having already worked in the Eastern Cape, Kwa-Zulu Natal, Gauteng and now the Western Cape as the academic year concludes.
Focusing on exercise and nutrition, the Disney Health Happy Play programme is being implemented by leading sports coaching and development organisation Sporting Chance, with material initially developed in collaboration with the Sports Science Institute of South Africa.
The Disney Happy Healthy Play programme consists of three components:
- An Edu Module was created for Grade Three teachers and learners with iconic characters such as Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald, and Goofy. The colourful, exciting posters focus on the importance of physical activity, how to participate in sport and play, and their subsequent positive effects. Included in the module is a focus on balanced eating and nutrition.
- Installation of the Disney Healthy Happy Play active play area which is a painted one hundred square-metre activity circuit that provides a valuable piece of indestructible equipment, empowering learner and educators for Physical Education sessions and assessments.
- Music-filled, fun morning assemblies at the various schools, in which the importance of physical activity is communicated to teachers and learners in a lively and entertaining format.
Christine Service, Senior Vice President and General Manager of The Walt Disney Company Africa, expressed her delight about the programme, and said: “We are proud to be in our 8th year of Disney Happy Healthy Play, having now brought the program, together with Sporting Chance, to over 150 000 children. We hope that Disney Happy Healthy Play will continue to be a positive and exciting experience for teachers and students, encouraging them to emphasise healthy eating and physical activity into their everyday family lives.”
According to the Healthy Active Kids report 2018, the policy-implementation gap regarding physical education in the South African Education curriculum is widening. Out of 12 countries, South Africa had the greatest percentage of learners (32%) not participating in physical education at school.
Sporting Chance’s General Manager, Natalie Pollock, explained: “Physical Education (PE) was dropped from the South African public school curriculum in 1994 and only reinstated as part of the Life Orientation subject in 2007. The introduction of a National Sport and Recreation Plan has led to improvements in PE and nutrition but, overall, we are not doing nearly enough to help children eat better and exercise more. The lack of sports opportunities in schools and limited resources mean that less than a third of schools from disadvantaged communities have regularly scheduled PE.
Pollock continues: “The Disney Happy Healthy Play programme supports under-resourced schools to advance their Physical Education practices by providing them with training and equipment and, most importantly, by monitoring their progress and providing mentorship. We are proud to be collaborating with Disney Africa, whose exciting and imaginative content brings the programme, its engagement and interactivity to life”.
To find out more please visit www.sportingchance.co.za or contact Natalie Pollock gm@sportingchance.co.za
Story and Images: Sporting Chance
