As a mom of four (three in school), it’s not always easy to insist on healthy foods, physical activity and healthy habits. Most days, it’s hard to get all four kids out of bed, eating breakfast and out the door in time for school. It takes some creativity to find time to pack three school lunches and snacks for each day of the week, especially since we’re gluten free.

But I’ve figured out creative ways and little tricks to support good nutrition and even make eating gluten free fun because I know the health lessons my kids learn now have an enormous impact on lifelong achievement. Physical activity and healthy eating not only prevent obesity and chronic diseases, they have been shown to increase concentration in class, lower rates of absenteeism and improve test scores and academic performance.

I’m constantly on the lookout for new tools and resources to improve what I’m doing to encourage wellness at home, but my kids aren’t home all the time. In fact, every year they spend a quarter of their lives at school – more than 2,000 hours. I would love to learn more about what my kids’ schools are doing to promote wellness or get involved in those efforts.

And guess what? I’m not alone. A new survey from the Kansas Health Foundation (KHF) found that 86 percent of parents want more information on school wellness guidelines and practices. Nearly 40 percent want to be involved in improving health at their child’s school, but don’t know where to start.

Luckily for Kansas families, there’s a great new effort and website from KHF intended to bridge this information and resource gaps between families and school leaders. Team Up for Kansas Kids aims to facilitate the constructive discussions and positive partnerships that will help ensure Kansas kids grow up healthy, smart and strong.

The website has a whole section of resources geared specifically to family members, including examples of successful programs, how-to-guides and creative ideas for promoting wellness at home and in the classroom. There are also simple tips and guidelines for starting conversations with school leaders and making wellness a priority in your community.

Check out the website and take the pledge to learn more and take action. Because when we all work together, Kansas kids succeed.

I was not compensated for this post…I’m sharing because I have a lot invested in Kansas kids (understatement of the year!).