North Star kids get physical education through charter program
MARQUETTE -- It seems fairly typical--a daily morning workout led by a Motions Fitness trainer in Marquette.
The class is miles away at North Star Academy. More than 150 students and staff participate in the 8 a.m. sessions every weekday.
"It's fun...a good workout," says fifth grader Shawn Pyykola.
Cameras, monitors, and projectors connect the class. Both the instructor and the school can see each other. It's part of a pilot program called "SOAR," and it's a realization of Motions Fitness owner Mike Koskiniemi's dream...a dream that took more than six years of working with cameras, the Internet, and ever-changing technology to make possible.
The whole school gets a workout at the same time through a computer. The class is streamed live through the Internet. It's the medium that has presented several challenges.
"One of the big things has been speed and streaming--rendering video and voice and sound at the same time is really hard to do over the Internet," says Mike Koskiniemi. "It's been taking time and patience along with technology to catch up with my hopes and dreams to do that, and they've actually done it."
North Star Academy was first in line for a trial run. The program kicked off this fall.
"Each day I think we see the students becoming more enthusiastic," says Karen Anderson, North Star superintendent. "The students are starting the day in a much healthier way, and hopefully learning a healthier lifestyle--getting used to this."
Marquette may be just the beginning.
"We want to see every school tap in. We want to see any school across the globe tap in and start their day with physical education right here, from Marquette, Michigan, at Motions," said Koskiniemi.