CREATE Inc. and the Baldwin County School District are partnering to teach children a skill with lifelong benefits.
According to Toyia Barnes, director of CREATE Inc., the nonprofit began back in 2009 with a musical component in which they taught kids instruments and singing. It then moved into other areas including dance and eventually to recreation.
“Our goal was to get kids doing activities outside and not necessarily always online and on a tablet or a phone,” she said.
The goal led to a cycling program in which middle and high school kids who are members have taken rides all over Georgia and in other states like New York, Oklahoma and Texas. Since students in the program are given so many opportunities for traveling and learning, it was immediately a popular activity choice that parents wanted to get their kids involved in. There was just one problem though — many of the kids who were interested in joining didn’t know how to ride a bike.
To remedy the problem, CREATE Inc. has started a program within Baldwin County School District that teaches kindergarten students how to ride a bike. The program was piloted at Midway Hills Primary School. Principal Tara Burney is already seeing the positive results.
“I think it’s teaching them to have confidence in themselves,” she said of the students. “It’s really building character because they’re helping each other and encouraging each other to not be afraid to try, and it’s also building leadership skills… Our kids are really excited about what […]
Continue reading the original article at: www.unionrecorder.com