Local Elementary Students Celebrate 650,000 Minutes of Physical Activity at School with GoNoodle

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St. Francis Medical Center, Novo Nordisk, and GoNoodle help students move, improve performance; families can sign up for free and keep moving at home all summer

Students in Trenton elementary schools are celebrating the incredible milestone of 650,000 minutes of physical activity documented with GoNoodle this school year.

GoNoodle is an online suite of interactive movement videos. It helps teachers motivate and engage students with 3-5 minute moderate to vigorous exercises they can perform next to their desks. Through the 2018-2019 school year, GoNoodle is available for free to every Trenton Public School and Diocese of Trenton elementary school classroom thanks to a 3-year sponsorship from St. Francis Medical Center and Novo Nordisk.

According to the CDC, only one-quarter of today’s youth meet the current recommendation of at least 60 minutes of physical activity per day. Together with St. Francis and Novo Nordisk, GoNoodle is helping Trenton students accumulate vital movement minutes with entertaining experiences that feature high-energy dance music, fitness routines, virtual field trips and physical challenges. Through increased movement in the classroom, these elementary students are not only improving their health but also boosting their cognitive processing, focus and academic performance.


Kids and parents are also increasingly using GoNoodle at home turning screen time into active time. Parents can sign up for a free account and log in from home – providing a new outlet for summer activity.


“This paves the way for proactive health by making it a resource for our children,” said Judy Rottkamp, Physician Liaison at St. Francis Medical Center.

The partnership between Novo Nordisk and the Trenton School District involves GoNoodle and other nonprofit agencies working together to provide opportunities for Trenton children to engage in healthy eating and exercise through the Ready, Set, Healthy! program. The program is designed to help improve the health and wellbeing of Trenton’s young people by increasing knowledge about and access to healthy, affordable foods; provide more opportunities for physical activity; and give students, parents, and caregivers the tools to make healthy lifestyle choices. Novo Nordisk is a proud sponsor of the Ready, Set, Healthy! program.

“The number one health care crisis that our children are facing today is childhood obesity and the early onset of type 2 diabetes,” said Genevieve Jean-Bart Fadayomi, Associate Director, U.S. Corporate Sustainability & Social Impact, Novo Nordisk. “As health professionals, educators and community members, we are committed to supporting parents and the school in their efforts to ensure our children engage in healthy eating and exercise programs that help them take control of their health now and into the future.”

To use GoNoodle, teachers need to have a computer with an Internet connection and a shared screen such as a projector or interactive white board. Trenton teachers in the sponsored schools have access to over 300 online
movement videos, including exclusive GoNoodle PLUS videos that bring movement and core-subjects together to develop fluency in grade-specific math and ELA topics. These short movement videos incorporate kinesthetic and active learning principles by closely tying movement with core content. Both energizing and calming videos are available to help teachers channel kids’ energy for good while incorporating math, spelling and vocabulary.

Thanks to the sponsorship by St. Francis Medical Center and Novo Nordisk, teachers, kids and parents can access GoNoodle for free by visiting http://www.gonoodle.com.

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