Contact

4701 Doyle St. Bldg. F Emeryville, CA 94608
Office: (510) 655-1265
Fax: (510) 594-1997

Head Over Heels Mission Statement

Head Over Heels was founded with two primary beliefs:

-Gymnastics is a natural foundation for all forms of athletics

-Individuals given the opportunity to explore what their bodies are capable of at a young age are more apt to stay physically active throughout their life.

At Head Over Heels, we understand the correlation between being physically active and the development of strong brain function; health of mind and body. It is proven that maintaining one's physical strength leads to greater mental clarity and supports an individual's self-esteem. It is our mission to improve our students' quality of like by helping them to achieve their individual athletic goals while instilling a life-long love of being physically active.

About Head Over Heels

Head Over Heels Athletic Arts, a 501(c)(3) organization, has provided positive athletic experiences to toddlers, children, teens, and adults since 1977. Our philosophy is that the self-confidence achieved through participation in organized athletics will follow an individual throughout their lives. We understand the balance between receiving positive reinforcement, understanding the need to practice good sportsmanship, and consistently striving to put forth one's best effort. We believe these skills are the backbone of a healthy, active, well-adjusted adult and this is our wish for all students in out care.

HOH programs include recreational, competitive and special needs gymnastics, recreational and pre-performance circus arts, dance, trampoline, tumbling, and martial arts. HOH also offers seasonal camps, birthday parties, field trips, Friday night Parent's Night Out and regular physical education classes for several local preschools.

In the past few years, we have had many major accomplishments. Katreece Roberts, our Executive Director, also serves as our Head Coach. As a result of her efforts, as well as the efforts of our extremely capable coaching staff, HOH sent many of our competitive gymnasts to States this year. Our Victoria Mar, Level 9, won All Around in 2010 at States, Regionals and Westerns (which encompasses all of the states on the western side of the U.S.) after a debilitating injury in 2008. In 2011, our HOH Level 9 Team became the NorCal State Champions.

In 2011, our fundraising efforts allowed us to offer the Emeryville Child Development Center, Emeryville's preschool, a scholarship for their weekly classes. We were also able to continue to offer the Emeryville Recreation Department a greatly reduced rate to bring the Anna Yates students in the Rec Center's after school program to our facility.

Program Overview

Flip Into Fitness reaches out to Emeryville youth, offering opportunities to increase physical activity and knowledge of food and nutrition in an exciting, fun environment. Head Over Heels Athletic Arts (HOH) will run the program to benefit the students of Anna Yates Elementary School (AYE). Flip Into Fitness will provide students with weekly Physical Education (P.E.) at HOH, will instruct the designated educator / coach at AYE in how to keep students moving forward in their athletic education between their weekly visits to the HOH facility, and will provide Food and Nutrition Education once a week at the school site. 

Physical Education

Anna Yates Elementary students participating in the Flip Into Fitness program participate in a 60 minute class at Head Over Heels once per week. The class curriculum is designed to teach students new, creative ways to exercise, as well as to teach students why lifelong physical activity is important for health and overall well-being. The P.E. class curriculum has an academic component in which students will learn basic anatomy and physiology as well as what happens to your body as a result of, or lack of, consistent exercise. The physical component of the curriculum includes flexibility, strength, cardio, coordination, and balance. Students practice these aspects of physical  activity through a variety of gymnastics based activities. It is the goal of the program for students to develop overall fitness in preparation of participating in a HOH athletic discipline or participating in middle and high school intermural sports.

Food and Nutrition Education

Students receive Food and Nutrition Education as part of the Flip Into Fitness program. Educated instructors will teach students basic food and nutrition related topics, with the goal that students will become more familiar with where food comes from, what food does for your body, and why making healthy food choices is essential for long term health. Topics may include: food groups, basic cooking techniques, basic food digestion and metabolism, and gardening.

The Vision

It is Head Over Heels' vision that Flip Into Fitness will be the primary means of nutrition and physical education for Emeryville students. Flip Into Fitness will expose low-income students to valuable and potentially life-saving information that would not otherwise be available to them. Because of the Flip Into Fitness program students can make more informed lifestyle choices and will have the knowledge, facilities, and support to increase their physical activity and choose a more healthful diet.

As part of the Flip Into Fitness program Head Over Heels' nutritionist / coach will involve AYE students' parents in the physical and nutritional education process through take home handouts and challenges as well as bi-annual direct conversation at Anna Yates Elementary's Parent Teacher Organization meetings.

Goals:

Expose Emeryville schools to Head Over Heels' programs

Establish a sense of community while developing a relationship between Emeryville Schools and HOH

Expose Emeryville students to new, fun and creative ways to exercise

Increase Emeryville students' knowledge of the importance of physical activity and nutrition

Expose Emeryville students to new foods and shed light on the impact that unhealthy food choices they make have on their bodies

Increase Emeryville youth's knowledge of the importance of a healthful diet

Increase Emeryville students' knowledge of how their bodies work, including muscle groups and the movement those muscle groups support

Objectives:

Provide a professional athletic education to students who would not otherwise have the opportunity to partake in Head Over Heels' programs

Provide a new pool of potential talent for Head Over Heels and create athletic advancement opportunities within our organization for students who excel in a particular program