The PE classes joined the school-wide wellness initiative on October 23rd by taking part in team-building activities during every gym period. The gym teachers lead their classes in activities that allow students to have fun, laugh, and relieve stress.

Before the activity, students discussed their take on wellness in general, and the effort to get involved with wellness in WHHS. 

Most students generally felt the same way. 

“I think the wellness initiative is a really good idea, but I don’t think there is enough participation so it’s not really that effective,”  says Jennifer Smith, senior.

“I think they are making a good attempt at addressing the wellness issue,” Laura Lassen, also a senior, said.
“It’s good in theory, but in practice it’s not.” 

Kelly Venezia, guidance counselor and a leader of the wellness initiative, addressed the students of first-period gym recognizing that students seem lukewarm on those initiatives so far.

“Part of the feedback we heard from all of you is that a lot of you are hesitant to get down and get involved in wellness. So, what we’re trying to do now is bring wellness Wednesday to you.”

With these ideas in mind, the school decided to have a wellness activity during gym so that every student could participate. By the guidance department implementing wellness into everyday classes, it makes it easier for students to enjoy the benefits of their initiatives. 

PE teacher Brian Gelalia explains, “I think the guidance department and the phys ed department have done a phenomenal job working hand-in-hand to try to bring this to our students. The beauty of phys ed is that we do get to see every student. Why not do it in a phys ed class, where we can vary activities and do some things that are a little bit different and bring a more fun atmosphere. We are promoting something that should be involved in phys ed because we are doing things that are team-oriented. 

The activities that the students took part in were team-building exercises, and many of them included the whole class working together. The PE teachers feel that this is the best way to bring people together and get everyone involved. 

Senior Kyla Gallipoli remarked, “I actually enjoyed the wellness activities more than I expected. It made the period go by faster and I enjoyed doing these non-competitive activities with my friends.”