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School Wellness Weekly

November 24, 2020
The Rock the Ribbon campaign banner from the National AIDS Trust celebrating World AIDS Day, December 1. A red ribbons lays across the banner.
Health Education Benefits Our Students and All New Yorkers
Our educators are key to keeping our City safe and healthy. Teaching students disease and illness prevention skills and behaviors benefits all New Yorkers. The health and safety lessons our students learn in Health Education not only keep them healthier but also can help protect their families and caregivers, friends, neighbors, teachers, and others around them. To continue supporting educators while school buildings are closed—and to help plan for when buildings reopen—see the updated Health Education instructional toolkits (opens in new window), just in time to prepare for this year’s World AIDS Day on December 1. To help engage students in learning on this special day, the updated instructional toolkits now include:

  • Grades K-5: Disease and Illness Prevention: HIV/AIDS Unit
  • Grades 6-8 and 9-12: Sexual Health units

The required HIV/AIDS curriculum for grades K-12 is the NYC Department of Education HIV/AIDS Curriculum (2012 edition, opens in new window) Teachers can modify the lessons to fit their remote learning needs; suggestions are included in the toolkit updates:

  • Grades K-6: Five lessons per year from this curriculum are required for all students.
  • Grades 7-12: Six lessons per year from this curriculum are required for all students. 

As part of a comprehensive Health Education curriculum, the updated instructional toolkits also include the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug-Use Prevention units for grades 6-8 and 9-12. Continue to visit the Blended and Remote Learning page (opens in new window) in our Professional Learning catalog for the latest resources, including videos on how to access PE and Health Education resources on the DOE’s TeachHub. 
Photo credit: National AIDS Trust.
Wellness Highlights
Join a Free Virtual Summit for 2020 World AIDS Day, December 1 – 3
At the free 22nd Annual World AIDS Day and Ending the Epidemic (ETE) Summit (opens in new window) December 1 through December 3, attendees will virtually experience a tour of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, a young adult speakers panel, keynote speakers, breakout sessions, updates from the City and State, and more. This year highlights many of the testimonies of determination, courage, hope, and progress that New Yorkers continue to demonstrate each day, despite the challenges of 2020. Register (opens in new window) as a school or individual. Questions? Contact [email protected] (opens in email window) or [email protected] (opens in email window).
Physical Education
Register for December PE Online Professional Learning Communities
While teaching fully remote, you can still connect with your Physical Education colleagues Citywide at our next PE Online Professional Learning Communities (PE OPLCs) the week of December 7. Visit the Professional Learning Catalog (opens in new window) for upcoming dates and registration links. 

Joining a PE OPLC gives PE teachers a chance to learn from each other by sharing best practices, problems of practice, and feedback on resources for PE instruction and engaging students and families during in-person learning, blended learning, or remote learning. PE OPLC sessions will take place on Microsoft Teams.
Health Education
Grades 6-12 Teachers: Upcoming Health Education Online Professional Learning Communities
Our Health Education Professional Learning Communities are now online! See our Professional Learning catalog (opens in new window) to register for upcoming sessions December 14 (grades 6-8) and December 15 (grades 9-12). Health Education OPLCs offer educators an opportunity to connect with other DOE teachers to identify and share best practices and challenges in providing Health Education instruction remotely. 

Free Virtual Workshops and Guidance on Teen Dating Violence and Healthy Relationships
Stay-at home-policies and social distancing during COVID-19 can increase stress and make people feel powerless and not in control of their lives—conditions that may increase abusive behavior in households and relationships. Access free help and share with others:



  • For the entire school community: Participate in the annual global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence Campaign from Wednesday, November 25 through Thursday, December 10. Join an hour-long bystander intervention training during the 16 Days to make NYC’s public spaces safe for all New Yorkers regardless of gender identity, gender expression, or background. Visit the hollaback! website (opens in new window) to sign up for a bystander intervention training session. The campaign flyer (opens in new window) identifies additional ways to take action against gender-based violence. Questions? Contact Helen Broad, [email protected] (opens in email window), CGE Special Projects Coordinator. *Remember that to ensure safety online, students should not post images or videos of themselves on social media without approval from a trusted adult.
Building the Wellness Community
Free Virtual Professional Development for Sex-Ed Teachers at Teachers College 
The Sex Education Initiative at Teachers College, Columbia University is holding its fourth annual Teacher Training in Spring 2021. Submit applications (opens in new window) by December 15. This online, fully funded professional development opportunity provides health and sex ed educators with training on Reproductive Life Planning (RLP) and Reproductive Identity Formation (RIF). Participants learn from content area experts, explore their own personal values and norms, and gain skills and tools for engaging their students and community in these topics. Visit the website (opens in new window) for more information.

For Secondary Schools: Free Virtual COVID-19 PEP Talks by Doctors on the Front Lines
The Prevention and Education Partnership (PEP) (opens in new window) is offering virtual COVID presentations to New York City schools teaching grades 6-12 this year by doctors from NYU Langone Health, NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, and the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. With experience working on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, the team shares their stories and knowledge about this deadly virus and how to stay safe. Get your school community involved:

  • Register for a COVID-19 PEP Talk (opens in new window) (scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis)
  • Confirm your talk (a member of the PEP Team will reach out)
  • Share the Zoom meeting link with your teachers and students
  • Connect your participants via Zoom for their scheduled talk
  • Complete our post-PEP Talk feedback and attendance record

Share with Adults 18+: Free In-Person Bike Skills 101 Classes from Bike New York
Bike New York provides safely distanced, in-person, free bicycle education classes at their newly opened John-Carlo Monti Community Bike Education Center in Riverside Park. Classes will be available at the Center and start with Learn to Ride classes for adults (opens in new window) on November 28. All classes follow a COVID safety protocol to help protect the health and well-being of students, instructors, and volunteers.