Fit Kids: Getting a jump start

(EAST ROCHESTER) - For over a decade, teacher's aide Mark Garno has been getting kids active at East Rochester Elementary.  He's all about kickball; before class and after lunch, every day, all school year.

"We go in the morning.   I take various groups in the morning, 20 to 25 minutes we have the gym available before school starts," said Garno.  "It gets them thinking, it gets them moving around, and I think it starts out the day better."

Garno going the extra distance for the kids has not gone unnoticed.  They kids love it, and their parents do too - as does the guy in charge.

"It's not only the nutrition and the wellness," said Harold Leve, Principal at East Rochester Elementary.  "Kids are learning sportsmanship, how to get along, how to problem-solve when they're playing.  It's a wonderful thing for our students.  It's a great outlet, and if you give kids that activity during the day, they're going to attend better in class in the afternoon."

In a day and age when many kids don't even get 10 minutes of exercise a week, kids who play kickball with Garno get at least that a day.

"They want to go home after school, they're going to sit down and do their homework - there's one period of sitting," said Garno.  "Then they're going to sit down at their computer, they're going to sit down and play video games, then they sit down for dinner, and they're not getting their exercise during that time.  At least here, they're getting something."