By Stacey Fisher
Freelance reporter
Special to the Tribune

Learning about Anatomy, Physiology, and healthy living is the goal of Body Venture, a traveling exhibit that is visiting elementary schools throughout Kansas. On Tuesday, March 4, more than 113 students from Skyline Elementary School got to experience the walk-through event that stressed the importance of healthy living now and into the future.

The students were in full agreement that the exhibit was a very interesting and fun way to learn about one of the most important aspects of life, your health. The excitement expressed going into the presentation was only eclipsed by the joy and wonder on the students’ faces as they exited.

There were 11 stations that visitors stopped at as they traveled through the exhibit. The two landslide favorites were the Lunchroom and Skin displays. These were an inside view into the digestive tract and a close-up and personal tour of our largest organ, the integumentary system.

“Body Venture is a wonderful way for students to have fun learning about health, nutrition, and physical activity,” said Marie Hayes, Skyline Schools Nurse. “What’s great is that the kids are actively involved in learning about good nutrition and making healthy lifestyle choices. It was so much fun!”

Along with the Body Venture tour, Skyline is maximizing the experience by having an Art Contest. PreK through fifth-grade students will create a piece of art focusing on something they learned about physical activity, safety, and/or the brain during their Body Venture tour. The school is also giving away bicycle helmets provided by Safe Kids Worldwide. These prizes will be awarded at the Kindergarten through grade-eight assembly on Thursday, March 13 .

Many people came together to make this presentation happen.

“I can’t express my gratitude to all the volunteers for making this event a success,” said Hayes. “[I would like to thank] Skyline FFA Students, teachers, Administration, parents, Pratt County Health department, Pratt County Emergency Department, Grand Plains Skilled Nursing, the American Heart Association, KU Med, the iAm Healthy Program. Beck’s supplied popcorn for all students traveling through the exhibit. It was so exciting, [and I am] grateful that our school was chosen to be part of this fantastic event by the Kansas Department of Education.”