Who Are We?

The purpose of this blog is to provide teachers with useful and effective ways to incorporate the required 20 minutes of DPA (Daily Physical Activity) into their classrooms. Please check our blog regularly as there will be frequent updates!

We are five girls currently completing our primary/junior Bachelor of Education degrees at The University Of Ottawa. 

Hi! My name is Mollie Halverson, that's me on the left. I was born and raised in Ottawa and I've now attended both universities here. After completing my undergraduate degree in Psychology at Carleton University, I moved on to do my Bachelor of Education at Ottawa U. I love Ottawa because there are so many ways to be active! Last summer I took up mountain biking and explored the Gatineau hills which are only ten minutes away. I also started running; the picture is from the National Capital Race Weekend last May. In the winter, I enjoy skiing (both cross-country and downhill) and skating on the canal. I look forward to exploring outdoor Ottawa activities with my students one day! I hope you enjoy our blog!!

Hi Everyone!

My name is Meagan Harrington and I am also a student at the University of Ottawa in the Bachelor of Education Program. I received my undergrad in Law from Laurentian University in Sudbury, which was a fantastic experience because Northern Ontario is an amazing place for winter activities! I love to cross country ski in the winter, and go camping and hiking in the summer. I have played competitive soccer my entire life, and I was also a competitive dancer for sixteen years. Participating in extracurricular activities has had a wonderful impact on my life, both physically and socially, and I am excited to share my ideas with you. I hope you find our blog useful and fun!!

Hi, my name is Jennifer Thomas. I graduated from Bishop’s University with my Undergrad degree in Psychology. I am currently finishing up my Bachelor of Education degree at the University of Ottawa. I have a strong passion for physical fitness and love being active. I enjoy skating and baseball and my favorite thing to do is to go for a run with my dog Cooper! I hope you all find these blog tips helpful! Keep reading, get active, and remember, if you have the choice, take the stairs!

Hello All,

My name is Charlotte Blahut. I am currently taking my Ed. Degree at University of Ottawa. I also have a degree in Fashion Marketing from Ryerson University in Toronto. Daily physical activity has been a huge part of my life since I could remember. As a young girl I was always active! I was on the Jr. high school basketball team as well as the track and field team. I was also a gymnast for 13 years. I love camping and cycling, and in the last 5 years I have completely fallen in love with YOGA. I am so excited to share with you the benefits and fun yoga can bring to your life. One of the best things about Yoga is that ANYONE at ANY age can do it! After reading our blog, I hope everyone will love yoga as much as I do!

Hello! My name is Alison McIntyre. I graduated with a Bachelor of Health Sciences degree from the University of Western Ontario and I am currently completing my Bachelor of Education degree at the University of Ottawa. Healthy living has always been an important aspect of my life and I am looking forward to promoting it to my future students. Growing up my favourite sports were basketball, volleyball, soccer, baseball and track. I now enjoy working out throughout the year, leisure bike rides during the summer and snowboarding in the winter. I have recently become interested in yoga so I will see where that takes me! We can't wait to share our ideas with you- we hope you find them useful for your classroom!

Welcome To DPA Is The Way!!

In October of 2005, The Ministry of Education announced that students in grades one to eight would be required to take part in at least twenty minutes a day of moderate to vigorous activity. This initiative was part of the government of Ontario’s plan for Healthy Schools, and requires that teachers incorporate physical activity into their instructional time. Daily Physical Activity (DPA) is essential to a student’s growth and development can take place in the classroom, the school yard, or the gym for example.

Obesity rates are on the rise amongst young children and having the opportunity to move around throughout the day will not only encourage students to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but it also enhances their overall well being. Studies also show that daily physical activity will also help students focus in class and can contribute to academic performance and achievement. On top of this, incorporating daily physical activity into the classroom is a wonderful technique for teachers to use in their classroom management strategies. Incorporating DPA into a student’s day has a very positive impact on a student’s health and attitude and we believe that teachers, parents, and the community must come together to ensure that students are receiving the required daily physical activity.

Having just completed our practicums, we have all noticed how it can be difficult to incorporate the required twenty minutes a day of daily physical activity into instructional time. We are all very passionate about fitness and physical activity, and our goal is to create a weekly blog about DPA which can be used as a resource for our fellow teacher candidates, parents, students and teachers. This blog will be a welcoming and open forum and we hope you love it as much as we do!