More than 4,000 pupils in 48 County Clare primary schools are currently signed up to the biggest health homework programme in Ireland.
Nationwide, in excess of 180,000 school children, 7,000 teachers and 75,000 families are participating in an innovative programme, Super Troopers with laya healthcare, which encourages daily physical activity to be treated with the same importance as their regular school homework and other subjects.
Super Troopers is now in place in more than 1,000 or one third of all Ireland’s primary schools and registration is still open for more schools to sign up to the programme until October 30.
The 30-week programme has been designed by teachers for teachers and is backed by Clare-based leading clinical psychologist and parenting expert, David Coleman.
David Coleman explains that the unique part of the Super Troopers initiative is that it is a long-term habit-changing programme for children to encourage positive attitudes towards healthy eating, well-being and exercise and not a quick-fix solution.
“Super Troopers is unique in that it is the first health programme that bridges school with home, and connects kids with their ‘triangle of influence’ – peers, teachers and families – to get more active and learn healthy habits together. It is building good habits from a young age,” said Mr Coleman.
“While it’s aimed, in part, at tackling the issue of childhood obesity, Super Troopers is a game changer as it concentrates more on fostering healthy attitudes and behaviours around physical activity, food and wellbeing that kids can take from childhood into their adulthood,” continued Mr Coleman.
According to Safe Food, one in four children in Ireland is currently overweight or obese. As the biggest health homework programme in Ireland, Super Troopers is endorsed by Healthy Ireland, which recently announced an action plan that involves every part of Irish society in improving our health and wellbeing.
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.