Public
health messages about healthy eating and active living, while key to
health promotion initiatives, can be misinterpreted by some children.
Studies show 30% of girls and 25% of boys, aged 10-14 years were dieting
to lose weight despite being within a healthy weight range. 
Early adolescence is a particularly risky period for
the development of disordered eating because of the normative stressors
that can trigger its onset. These include physical changes associated
with puberty such as natural increases in body fat and weight, an increased
desire for peer acceptance, and peer pressures to conform to a "thin" or "muscular" body
shape ideal.
The Student Body training modules are designed for
elementary school teachers who work with children in grades 4, 5, and
6. This is a primary prevention resource designed to help children develop
positive body image and reduce their risk for developing unhealthy eating
behaviours.
 Classroom
activities are included within the modules so that teachers can share
effective health promotion strategies with their students. They are matched
to the Ontario and Nova Scotia Ministry of Education Learning Outcomes.
Although the Student Body program is designed for teachers (and support
staff like public health practitioners) and students in grades 4, 5,
and 6, the information may be adapted to meet the needs of older students.
The Student Body is a health promotion program designed to help prevent
the onset of unhealthy dieting, and is not intended as a treatment tool
for youth who are already showing signs or symptoms of disordered eating.
 Background
Information is provided with every training module to give
educators a look at the factors involved in
that particular area of concern. Video excerpts provide further
insight, many from a teen's point of view. Information on
obtaining the videos can be found in the Supplementary Resources
section, where additional sources of information on that
topic can be found. See the information bar on the right
for more detail on these features, and Education Ministry
objectives related to each section.
The curriculum and training modules are drawn from outcome-based research conducted previously within Ontario (McVey, Davis, Tweed, & Shaw, 2004; McVey, Lieberman, Voorberg et al., 2003a,b; McVey, Tweed, Blackmore, 2006; McVey, Davis, Kaplan, Katzman et al., 2005). The Student Body is one of several resources developed by the research team within the department of Community Health Systems Resource Group at the Hospital for Sick Children to help prevent disordered eating across the lifespan.
Use the buttons above, or the navigation bar at the
top to navigate through the 6 different modules. Once
you have viewed the "Case Study" of a module use the
navigation on the top right to move through the 4 Steps. |
