PLANT CITY - A few steps from the gymnasium at Turkey Creek Middle School, six teachers plot to transform adolescent couch potatoes into fitness-minded thinkers.
Outside the small, chilly room where the brainstorming takes place, scores of students gather at an outdoor patio to eat, socialize and exercise.
Some sit at umbrella-shaded tables, sipping water or Gatorade. Nearby, a boys in a physical education class bat large rubber balls through the air, arms stretched skyward, bodies in motion.
The beverages are an alternative that Turkey Creek students are encouraged to choose over the soft drinks. The games are also meant to instill a healthy respect for the value of health and fitness.
"We've moved the Pepsi machines out of our area," said Tecca Kilmer, who has spent her 12-year career at this middle school. "As physical educators, we teach kids how to live."
These aren't just any physical education teachers.
Kilmer was honored last month by the National Association for Sport & Physical Education as the middle school PE Teacher of the Year for the Southern District.
The whole department has been recognized since 2004 for running an exemplary program. Kilmer and department head Butch Valdes, and teachers Marcy Beck, Kim Gerlich, Ira Shaw and Shane Rawlins are responsible for making the school one of 28 in the nation to be designated a Stars school.
Stars recognizes a school's total physical education program, an association spokeswoman said. Turkey Creek is one of the few middle schools to meet national guidelines set by the organization as well as the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The focus at Turkey Creek is making students aware of their lifestyle choices and to get them moving for life.
Jan Hollingsworth
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