Zest Quest

Zest Quest is a nonprofit children’s health initiative whose mission is to educate and inspire children to live healthier lifestyles. Launched in 2004 in South Carolina, Zest Quest seeks to create an enjoyable environment that inspires children to lead physically, emotionally and intellectually healthier lives through interactive, curriculum-based educational mentorship programs. The Zest Quest Program is a collaborative program involving school boards, superintendents, principals, teachers, community mentors and, of course, families and their children.

The Zest Quest Team is continuously working to develop a well-functioning program that can be adapted easily to a variety of schools. By analyzing children’s health data, developing a school-supported curriculum and implementing a well-functioning mentorship component, Zest Quest is making a positive impact on the health and lives of kids in the Carolinas and across the country.

Zest Quest has combined state educational standards with daily healthy habits to create a unique cross-curriculum. The purpose of the curriculum is to raise kids’ awareness about living a healthy lifestyle while reinforcing their math, science, social studies and English language arts skills. Zest Quest Wellness Coaches teach the curriculum once a week in the classroom. Every month the children focus on one of the daily habits and participate in four lessons. The wellness lesson consists of key facts and an activity to reinforce the specific habit being studied that month; community mentors further reinforce what is learned in the classroom.

Check out this sample Zest Quest Curriculum and visit Zest Quest’s website for more information about this innovative program.