Pre-kindergartners at the Abraham Lincoln School, along with their special adult helpers, participated in a winter workshop themed “You Gotta Have Heart.” The workshop culminated lessons on heart health and was inspired by Steven Kellogg’s “Mystery of Missing Mitten,” a book the students had read that tells a tale of a young girl, her favorite mitten and a snowman’s heart.  

Students created their own snowman out of a sock and designed a big, unique red heart for their sock snowman. Students also listened to the rhythmic beats of their heart and their helper’s heart using a stethoscope and then completed an aerobic activity to track how their heartbeats change following activity.

 “Teachers read a story to students about a lost mitten, and we incorporated that literacy lesson into a seasonal activity,” explained Abraham Lincoln Principal Dr. Christine Criscione in describing the multidisciplinary approach to the winter workshop. “In addition, students completed exercises that taught them about their heart rate while working with a family member.”