'Wheely' having fun in Lynbrook

Fourth graders at Lynbrook’s Waverly Park School have been combining exercise with reading in a grant-funded program called “Read and Ride.” From left were Dylan Godley, Jesse Lehman and Jack Hoffman pedaled as they read.

Courtesy Rosemary Leonetti/Syntax

After studying research showing that students with attention deficit issues have more success with reading when they have the opportunity to move, fourth-grade teacher Jessica Kuehn and physical education teacher Doreen Combs teamed up to create a project entitled “Read and Ride” at Lynbrook’s Waverly Park School.

The teachers were awarded a NEFCU grant for $250 under the credit union’s “Funding Your Ideas” teacher grant program. The grant money was used to purchase bike pedals for Kuehn’s fourth-grade class to create a center where students can combine reading and exercise.

Their three goals will be to increase reading levels, student fitness and student endurance. To test the effectiveness of the program, the two teachers will be measuring reading levels, body mass index and endurance levels at the beginning and end of the year.

“After researching several studies, we found that a whole-brain approach can transform student learning,” Kuehn said. “In this center,which will integrate physical education and English language arts, students will be able to utilize desk bike pedals as they are reading and applying reading strategies.”

“We wanted to create a program that promotes health and wellness as well as academic growth,” Combs said. “It has been found that students gain on average six pounds over the course of a school year because they spend most of the day sitting at their desks. We wanted to create an environment that would promote physical well-being while making children more inclined to want to read.”

“It is our mission at Waverly Park School to educate students to be lifetime learners who live an active, healthy lifestyle,” Principal Lucille McAssey said.