To address the health threat posed by childhood obesity and lack of health education in underserved schools, funded by an Initiative on Improving K-12 Education and the Stanford Office of Community Health Stanford researchers developed an educational intervention that focuses on Nutrition, Exercise, Healthy Weight, and Sleep in partnership with H.E.L.P. for Kids and Redwood City Schools in CA. This pilot project evaluates the design and implementation of an innovative science-based health education program that could be integrated into regular curriculum and used by children, parents, and educators.
This project considers the reality of the school environments and constraints under which teachers and other educational practitioners work, as well as the dynamics of the learning situation. Although there is evidence that health education increases knowledge levels, specific curriculum models tested here have not been evaluated in an underserved community setting. Implementation of Phase II of the pilot project consists of two different modes of teaching and evaluation of that teaching. 
In proper evaluation practice, we are developing a brand new curriculum in Healthy Weight, Physical Activity, Nutrition, and Sleep in the form of health science “modules,” each containing a short 50-min. lesson, 4-5 Key Teaching Messages, Helpful Tips for healthy behavior in those categories, interactive classroom activities, transparencies, images, video clips in DVD format, and a HealthyU Student Science Journal that students can fill out and take home to study or share.
The HealthyU is still in the experimental phase. If you are interested using in using the curriculum for your classroom, please contact Dr. Rodriguez for permission and access.