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New health classes in Batavia

Batavia elementary school students will have a new health and wellness class next year.

The weekly half-hour class will be put in place in response to a new contract with the district's teachers union.

It will focus both on physical health, like nutrition, and mental and emotional health, such as conflict resolution and how to stop bullying, said Jan Wright, district associate superintendent for teaching and learning.

The district plans to put together a committee to work on the class curriculum this year.

Students have four "specials" classes -- art, music, physical education and foreign language -- twice a week for half an hour each day.

Those are packaged into an hour four days a week in which teachers have planning time.

As part of a teachers union contract approved in May, the teachers will get an extra half hour for planning time on the fifth day.

"It was a very high priority of the bargaining teams," said Superintendent Jack Barshinger.

After talking to school principals, it was clear the curriculum that needed to be expanded was health and wellness, Wright said.

Right now the district has relied on health and safety information from Children's Health World, a nonprofit group that puts on presentations at the schools.

Lessons on fitness will remain part of the physical education curriculum, Wright said.

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