This year’s Montgomery County
host school will be Bells Mill Elementary School. Montgomery County Executive
Ike Leggett and Interim Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Larry
Bowers will join students, teachers and parents as they gather at Cabin John
Middle School at 9 a.m. and then begin their walk to school at 9:30 a.m.
As part of its Walk to School Day
participation, Bells Mill will launch a “Fire Up Your Feet” challenge. During
the month of October, teachers, families and students are encouraged to work
together to create active lifestyles that keep families healthy and help kids
improve academic performance. An online activity tracker lets families
and staff log their physical activity such as walking, playing, bicycling and
more. Schools with the most family and school staff participation have the
chance to win a portion of more than $100,000 in awards being offered
nationally. The awards are calculated based on participation in such
activities as “brain breaks” or walk-a-thons. Fire Up Your Feet is a program of
the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, the family engagement partner
for the national PTA and funded in large part by Kaiser Permanente.
