Skip to main content
. 2017 Sep 15;17:708. doi: 10.1186/s12889-017-4715-8

Table 1.

Group activities with students and parents/guardians at school

Themes Objectives
Reflective Meetings
With Students
Establishing bonds of trust Introduction of the research team to the students
Creating intimacy between research team and students
Clarification on the school Program “Health Multipliers”
Creating a personal diary to describe life events, perceptions, likings, worries, desires, etc Creating an instrument that fosters dialog among students, between students/teachers or research team
Teaching the students how to use the diary regularly
Is it possible to change? Discussing how students conceive themselves in that moment and what they would like to change in their lives
Discussing about body self-image
Discussing about which changes are possible and how to achieve them
Considering obstacles that make changes in a difficult life
Sharing experiences of students who have managed to change something in their lives, in particular, considering how they overcame obstacles in the classroom
Discussing about how it was possible for them to overcome such obstacles
How do I feel?
What do I do?
Favoring self-perception of their feelings at any given moment
Encouraging self-perception of more recurring feelings in their lives
Understanding how their feelings interfere on their day-to-day actions
Discussing if anyone in the group has ever experienced a situation in which, because of being under the influence of a strong feeling, has done something he/she regrets
Discussing if anyone, by perceiving feelings, was able to avoid some negative situation
Discussing about how did it happen.
How to deal with difficulties? Remembering situations that caused negative feelings
Remembering how they reacted to such situations
Remembering situations in which the students have actually succeeded in reacting in a satisfactory manner
Discussing about how students find the solution and how they can extend this solution to the lives of others
How to have fun in the real world? Understanding how students usually have fun in daily life
Considering the context in which fun happens: with whom, where, when, etc.
Remembering situations where they have been able to enjoy without having to use electronic equipment
Discussing about how that student found the solution, and how they can extend this solution to the lives of others
Getting to know each other Understanding what the students usually do together
Considering the context where they meet and interact
Understanding the barriers to meet friends
Remembering situations where they met to have fun
Understanding how they can expand social interaction among them
Reflective Meetings
Parents/guardians
How to find time? Understanding how they reconcile healthy habits and commitments, such as work, home care, children, and so on
Understanding if “health” is a priority in their lives
Reflecting on the consequences of a sedentary life
Understanding if they consider an active life for their children important, and how they encourage them to do so
Reflecting on moments in which it was possible to find time within the routine of each one to practice some activity that promotes their own health as well as their children’s
Dialogue, intimacy, and leadership Understanding how they engage in dialog with their children
Understanding if there is freedom of both parties—children and parents—for dialog
Promoting dialog between the parties
Understanding how they perceive themselves as protagonists of their own life and family life
Reflecting on how to improve dialog between the parties and whether anyone in the group has already succeeded at this
Nutrition Workshops
Students
Knowing the food routine of the students Understanding their eating routine and promoting reflection on how to improve it
Healthy versus unhealthy foods Identifying food preference
Reflecting on concepts of healthy and unhealthy foods
Knowing the ultra-processed food Discussing the main nutritional differences between natural, minimally processed and ultraprocessed foods by looking at labels and packages of industrialized products
Reflecting on the impact of the consumption of these foods on their health
What do I eat? Comparing the amounts of sugar, fat, and salt of natural and ultra-processed food.
Olympics in Brazil: what do athletes eat? Reflecting on feeding habits of famous athletes and comparing them with food choices of students
What food is this? Knowing and identifying natural foods
Cooking workshop: how to prepare tasty and delicious foods in a healthy way Learning easy recipes for making ice-cream using real fruits in the preparation
Awakening interest in developing these recipes at home
Nutrition Workshops Parents/guardians
Breakfast and quality of life Developing easy, inexpensive recipes for a breakfast routine
Talking about the relationship between eating breakfast, weight gain and the quality of life
The use of milk Discussing the consumption of milk from birth to the present moment in their children’s life
Knowing their preferences and frequency of milk consumption
Remembering the milk recipes developed by the family
Making together preparations of milk mixed with fruits
Sharing the experience of making and tasting the recipes developed
Discussing how to improve the family diet routine by milk consumption
Motivation to achieve nutritional goals Reflect, through the use of motivational sentences, about the difficulties they face to achieve the nutritional goals propose during the reflective meetings
Discussing the concepts that each one has about certain food, body composition, and life habits
Physical activity
Students
The importance of physical activity for health Raising awareness among students about the importance of regular physical activity for health and well-being maintenance
Stretching and relaxation activities Guidance on stretching and relaxation techniques so students can apply them in everyday life
Folk dance Constructing a folkloric dance choreography involving students and teachers, to present to parents and communities during a school festivity
Knowing about sports and competitions Two sports modalities were chosen, rugby and free dance, after discussion with the students. The students then studied the theory of each one of them, familiarized with the rules and applied the knowledge to propose new rules during the training
Physical activities involved exercises of strength, aerobics, balance, and resistance, culminating in a sporting tournament
Competition between classes A competition between classes occurred at the end of the first semester of intervention, counting on the involvement of children from three different classes and their teachers
Physical Activity (Parents/guardians)
Dialog with parents Dialog with parents/guardians about the importance of physical activity to the health and well being of their children
Playing with parents Developing plays to support contact and interaction between parents/guardians and children
Relaxing with parents Developing exercises of relaxation involving parents/guardians and their children to support the bond between them