In Support of the 'Let's Move' Campaign to Fight Childhood Obesity, Verizon Thinkfinity Providing Free Educational Resources on Nutrition and Exercise

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Feb. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- In support of first lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move campaign to battle childhood obesity, Verizon Thinkfinity has launched a new feature highlighting free educational resources to help teachers and parents educate their students on nutrition and encourage an active lifestyle.

The Thinkfinity feature, Let's Move, includes podcasts, videos, lesson plans and printable worksheets for use in the classroom, at home or by after-school programs.

The Verizon Thinkfinity Web site contains thousands of free, engaging educational resources that make learning fun. Lesson plans, in-class activities and homework help can be found quickly and searched by grade level, keyword or subject.

Among the resources included in the Verizon Thinkfinity Let's Move feature are:

• Obesity and Childhood Nutrition Town Hall: This resource from the American Association for the Advancement of Science's ScienceNetLinks contains videos on understanding childhood obesity and nutrition, information from leading health experts, and a demonstration of a fitness-oriented learning game. http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/tools.php?DocID=177
• Healthy Restaurants Podcast: This audio podcast from ScienceNetLinks discusses the decision by many restaurants to advertise "healthful" food, and how the advertisements may actually encourage overeating. http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/sci_update.php?DocID=337
• MyTube: Changing the World With Video Public Service Announcements: In this resource from the International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English's ReadWriteThink, students watch several public service announcements, then make and edit their own videos on important social, economic and politic topics. http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/mytube-changing-world-with-1069.html
• Nutrition and Exercise Worksheet: This resource from ScienceNetLinks will help students learn to develop healthy eating and exercise habits. http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/pdfs/obesity_actsheet.pdf

"The health and welfare of our children is a critical issue," said Verizon Foundation President Patrick Gaston.  "Through Verizon Thinkfinity, every teacher in reach of the Internet has easy access to fun, engaging tools to help teachers share valuable information on nutrition and health with their students."

In addition to providing standards-based resources from the nation's leading educational organizations, Verizon Thinkfinity also offers a comprehensive professional-development program that allows teachers to sign up for free online or face-to-face training to learn how to make the most of the free tools and resources.

Content for Verizon Thinkfinity is provided through a partnership between the Verizon Foundation and 11 of the nation's leading organizations in the fields of education and literacy: the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Council for Economic Education, International Reading Association, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, National Center for Family Literacy, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Council of Teachers of English, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, National Geographic Society, ProLiteracy and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

The Verizon Foundation supports the advancement of literacy and K-12 education through its free educational Web site, Thinkfinity.org, and fosters awareness and prevention of domestic violence.  In 2009, the Verizon Foundation awarded more than $67.5 million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad.  It also matched the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting in an additional $26.1 million in combined contributions to nonprofits.  Through Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation's largest employee volunteer programs, Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered more than 5 million hours of community service since 2000. For more information on the foundation, visit www.verizonfoundation.org.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers.  Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 91 million customers nationwide.  Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world.  A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of approximately 222,900 and last year generated consolidated revenues of more than $107 billion.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.  

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SOURCE Verizon