For Students, Canned Food Drive Is Exercise In Charity

Geier agreed.

"They are very responsive to it," she said. "They don't mind paying their dues. They know they need to do warm-ups and exercise before they can play."

The students say they love the dual benefits of the activity.

"It is good exercise," Bradley Martin, 11, a sixth-grader from Sykesville. "It's fun to do. You can always think of new exercises."

Jacob Hansen, 11, prefers to use the 30- to 40-ounce cans for exercise. He likes to use the cans to perform a butterfly exercise where he lies on his back and raises his extended arms together until the cans touch at the top.

"My classmates think it is going really well," he said. "It's important because others might not be as fortunate. We can use the cans here and then donate them."

Michael Leipold, 11, brought in Chef Boyardee and green beans. "I thought they would be good weights, and they taste good," the sixth-grader said.

"It can help kids think of ideas while they are at home so they don't play video games," he said.

The teachers plan to make the activity an annual event.

"We hope that other schools will do the same so that the spirit grows and grows," Smutz said.