2008 Coleman 50 States in 50 Days Challenge Frequently Asked Questions

What are the important dates to remember for the site?

• Thursday, August 21, 2008: Pre-registration begins for everyone. Students can register after their school has been registered by a teacher, but cannot log activity yet.
• Monday, September 1, 2008: Site officially opens, so students can start to record physical activity minutes/steps.
• Tuesday, November 11, 2008: Registration officially closes for everyone. Teachers cannot register any kids on their own either. Teachers who registered on this day need to remember that kids will have to be active everyday until the end of December.
• Wednesday, December 31, 2008: Entire site closes. Hike is over.
• Thursday, January 15, 2009: Top schools are announced on Web site.

What grade level is the site designed for?

Third grade and up.

Can teachers, students and individuals living outside the USA register?

Yes, international participants are welcome. Only teachers living in the 50 United States are eligible for the gift cards however.

How does this site work? Please describe the features of the site for students and teachers.

Click here to see a description of the site and its features.

How much does it cost to use the Coleman 50 States in 50 Days Challenge?

It is FREE to use for everyone.

How do we register for the site?

Registration directions for teachers, students, and individuals are located here.

What are the limitations to this site?

• The site will come down on December 31, 2008
• Only students who record either 60 physical activity minutes or 10,000 steps (or a combination of the two) can earn a segment to move toward reaching the next highpoint.
• A student can only earn one segment per day.
• Students cannot enter unlimited number of miles or steps per day. The cap is set at 120 activity minutes/20,000 steps per day.
• The final list of physical activities for which a child can record minutes or steps is limited to the list that is available.
• Students can only enter minutes or steps up to 3 days prior. However teachers can enter up to 122 days prior so if a student misses a day, or days, the teacher can enter the minutes, or steps, for a student.
• For schools to be eligible for recognition as one of the most active schools, they must have at least 50 student registrants.

What physical activities can the students select to complete a segment?

Click here to the see the list of physical activities available for this Challenge (PDF). These cannot be changed, and we are unable to accept suggestions for additional activities to be added throughout the Challenge.

Who can register and how does registration work?

Teachers, students or individuals are encouraged to register to participate in this site. We designed the site primarily for teachers to register their school and classes. Teachers are asked to register one or more classes. Students are then able to register by finding their school from a drop down menu organized by state. Once they find their school they can locate their class name and then register. The student is asked to create a Username (UN) and Password (PW). Once they have registered they can use their UN and PW to access the site from school, home, a library, etc.

What does a teacher do if he/she finds out that one of his/her students registered under the incorrect school or class.

It is best to have the student   register again and make sure he or she chooses the correct school and class. We also encourage you to contact us at PE Central ( pec5050@pecentral.org ) to let us know so we can delete the student from the other school and class for which he/she originally registered.

During teacher registration what do I do if I see that my school is already registered?

It is best to stop registration and do your best to find out who in your school registered your school. Please do not register again as we cannot add up class progress for a combined hike for your school. It is best that you have the students in your classes register with the teacher who initially registered your school.

As a teacher I am worried about the privacy of having my students sign up for the site. What assurances do I have that this will be safe and secure for my students?

Our number one concern is student privacy. For this reason, we have designed the site so we collect the minimum amount of personal information from kids, i.e. their first name, first initial of their last name, and date of birth. Complete details are described in our privacy policy. In order to register your school, you will need to acknowledge that you have read our privacy policy.

How long does the hike last?

The site will be taken down on December 31, 2008.

What do the students have to do to reach each highpoint?

To reach a highpoint, students need to be active at least 60 minutes or 10,000 steps (or a combination of the two) per day to reach a highpoint. A highpoint on this site is equal to 60 minutes of physical activity or 10,000 steps. Students have the option of selecting one or more physical activities from a list of more than 100 choices.

How are the most physically active schools determined?

Schools must have at least 50 students registered to be eligible for this honor. This is determined by the total number of students who enter at the school divided by the number who reach all 50 highpoints. For example, if a school has 30 students registered and all 30 complete the 50 highpoints by recording 60 minutes or 10,000 steps for each highpoint they would have a 100% rating. If a school has 750 students register and 452 complete the challenge, then they would have a 60% success rate and would be ranked accordingly. Remember, for a school to be considered for this, they must have at least 50 students registered for the program.

How can teachers retrieve their password if they forgot it?

Teachers can click on the “Forgot Password Link” on the front page of the site, fill in their e-mail address and we will e-mail them their password. We do not offer a password retrieval system for students because we do not collect their e-mail addresses for privacy reasons. If a student forgets their UN or PW, he or she needs to ask their teacher.

How many minutes/steps can students enter per day?

Up to 120 minutes of physical activity minutes and/or 20,000 steps. They can enter throughout the day but cannot exceed either of those numbers.

Can students record time/steps for more than one physical activity in a segment?

Yes, a student could record 30 minutes of one activity and 30 minutes of another or a student could record 10 minutes for 6 physical activities.

Can students record both steps and minutes?

Yes, for example, a student can record 30 minutes of physical activity and 5,000 steps and that would earn them a highpoint.

How many days prior can students enter their physical activity minutes/steps?

Up to three (3) days prior for students. Teachers can enter their students’ minutes and/or steps.

Do students have to use a pedometer?

It is not required. Students can record their physical activity in minutes and/or steps. They are asked during registration if they want to use a pedometer to record their activity steps. If they choose Yes, they can enter both steps and minutes. If they choose No, then they can only record activity minutes.

Can students enter their physical activity miles and/or steps from a computer at home?

Yes, we encourage that.

Does activity completed in physical education class count as part of the segment for the day?

Definitely. If a child is active in physical education for 20 minutes then they will only need 40 minutes additional activity on their own to complete the segment for the day.

Why are the segments 60 minutes or 10,000 steps long?

We have selected 60 minutes (10,000 steps) because this is the minimum amount of time experts at the Centers for Disease Control and National Association for Sport and Physical Education recommend that children be physically active on all or most days of the week to derive the health benefits of physical activity.

Are teachers able to register students’ names into the system?

Teachers are able to do so, but it is a time-consuming process. For this reason we recommend that the teachers register their schools and classes and then teach their students how to complete their own registration. Nevertheless, it is an option teachers have if they so choose. Teacher registration for students may be especially helpful if a new student enters the school once the Challenge has started.

What can registered students do?

• Record and edit their physical activity minutes and/or steps from any computer with Internet access.
• View their progress via a U.S. map that shows Mike’s route.
• Learn about the region surrounding each of the highpoints when recording at least 60 physical activity minutes or 10,000 steps on a daily basis.
• Choose from a large list of physical activities for which they can log minutes or steps.
• Learn more about the United States and the hike by answering a question of the day.
• View and print a certificate of achievement upon reaching the summit of each of the 50 states.
• Contribute to becoming one of the most active schools in the challenge.

What can registered teachers do?

• View their overall school statistics including: total number of registered students, number of students completing the hike, and number of segments completed out of maximum total.
• Manage their classes with a variety of tools including the ability to add and delete students and classes, edit class and student profiles, view student Usernames (UN) and Passwords (PW), view student progress, edit student steps and physical activity minutes, view class rosters, and view and print student achievement certificates for those students who complete the hike to the top all the states' highpoints.
• Have their school (name, city and state) recognized as one of the top most active schools in the Challenge by:
• having at least 50 registered students;
• and having enough minutes/steps recorded and a high enough participation-to-completion ratio to be ranked in the top schools participating in the Challenge.

How does the Avatar work?

Remember for every two segments you complete, you will have the chance to unlock a new item to further customize your Avatar.

1. Use the tabs (Face, Hat, Hair, Eyes, Mouth, Glasses, Ears, and Earrings) to browse through the avatar items.
2. When browsing through each category the grayed out items are inactive and the black and white ones are active.
3. Each time you have reached 2 segments, you will be able to add a new item. In this case when you mouse over an inactive item it will toggle to it's active state.
4. Click the item you have chosen to activate. This item will now remain in the active state each time you return to the avatar.
5. To change a color of an item, select that tab name. At the bottom of the avatar tool bar is a color pallet.
   
   Click on each color box to change the avatar item to that selected color.
6. After selecting a new item or changing a items color, click on the "Save Avatar Edits" button.