Recess Run Club Gets Kids Ready for Upcoming 5K in Rochester

It's recess at in Rochester Hills and the kids are running. But these days, it's not for tag or another playground game. These days, the running is part of a bigger picture.

In an effort to get students and families ready for the school district's annual , a 5K run/walk which is planned for May 12 in Rochester, the Brooklands PTA has started a recess Run Club, which invites children in grades first through fifth to spend part of their recess running quarter-mile laps around the playground.

The Run Club kicked off this week; it will continue every Monday, Wednesday and Friday through June, said coordinator Tracy Gruber.

Last year, Gruber the multitude of kids and families participating. She started researching run clubs for kids and had an idea.

"We should really do that at the school," Gruber remembers telling some PTA mom friends.

Two trainers and a manager from in Rochester Hills came out to the school Monday to help launch the program. They taught the kids about warming up and ran along with them on the makeshift track.

Kids received a popsicle stick every time they passed the start line; the sticks indicated they had run a quarter mile. At the end of their run, they logged their distance on a chart. The PTA will award incentives — like shoe tags — based on the distance they log.