• Bowden Youth Center, Sioux Falls, SD
• Flandreau Indian School, Flandreau, SD
• Tea School District, After School Program, Tea, SD - Tea Superintendent Feedback
• Hy-Vee, Minnesota Ave., Classes Starting in the Fall!

Dear Aaron,

Dakota kids was exactly the type of program I was hoping to find. My son is the youngest in the class, but Mr. Maguire had no problem talking on his level and getting him to participate. Since our first class, my son has been informing everyone in earshot about the sugar and fat in any particular food. I’ve even caught him practicing push-ups.

Aaron Maguire empowers the kids to make their own good decisions about health. In a language they can understand, he explains calories and portion control. He ingeniously keeps their attention the whole hour by throwing some exercises in every five minutes or so when the music comes on. Mr. Maguire also teaches team work, goal setting, and the feeling of accomplishing those goals.

Whether or not your child may have a weight issue, the Dakota Kids program is an excellent tool to teach children life skills that they will be able to use all of their lives.

Sincerely,

Amanda Oakland
 

“My daughter made me go to the store and buy kiwi to eat. She also made me change her after school days to the same days as the Dakota Kids program. She really likes the Dakota Kids program!”

Parent

Tea, SD After School Program
 

Aaron

Jessica wanted to take grapes to school today for her snack. That has never happened before. We will be in class Saturday.

Thanks.

Ann

I have had Aaron and his Dakota Kids program on campus for the last 3 weeks. His program provides vital information on nutrition and fitness to students. This program allows students to start the process of thinking about what they are putting into their body's and how those foods may affect them both now and later in their lives. It also allows them to begin the process of making better nutritional choices. Aaron has a good rapport with the students and shows a lot of care and concern for them. He has a fitness component in his program that all students do with him. They enjoy the activities he gives them to do and goal setting in all activities is another key component to his program. The team building activities he provides are very important to the program as well. They provide the opportunity for groups to set goals for themselves and work as a team to complete a task. His final component is affirmations. The last few minutes of his sessions students gather together and listen to positive affirmations which leave the students thinking positively and taking what they have learned that day to other classes and through out the rest of their day.

I highly recommend Aaron's program to other organizations. This is his passion and it shows in his organization and presentations. He has a great rapport with students and everyone can benefit from his expertise in nutrition and fitness. I wish him well and I see Dakota Kids thriving in the future.

Kathy Lundgren
Physical Education/Health instructor
Flandreau Indian School

Dear Aaron,

Dakota Kids, Inc. is definitely affecting our students! One of our kids had received two snack items as motivational prize—sugar free gum and a pack of Oreo Cakesters. She was showing them to me, and without any prompting she flipped them over to look at the nutritional information and compare them. She looked at calories, fat, and sodium, and concluded that the gum was a healthy snack and the Cakesters were not. This happened after just a few weeks of being in your program!

Amanda Potter
Family Literacy Supervisor
Volunteers of America, Dakotas
Sioux Falls, SD