Sibley class follow Blue Zones founder’s expedition to Icaria, Greece

Published 4:59 pm Saturday, May 2, 2009

They may only be in fifth grade, but they’ve easily picked up on the secrets of some of the wisest, longest-lived people in the world.

After taking part in Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner’s live expedition to Icaria, Greece — to discover what could potentially be the last Blue Zone on earth — the fifth-graders in Nancy Sorlie’s class at Sibley Elementary School are beginning to see the benefits of making wise, healthy decisions.

“I’m going to exercise a lot more,” said student Conner Kleinschrodt.

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“I’m going to start using olive oil with my food. And I’m probably not going to watch so much TV and go outside more, meet new people and have fun.”

They were just a few of the eight simple steps the students learned of what the people of Icaria do to live longer, more fulfilling lives. It was the conclusion of Buettner’s quest, as he sought to find out the reasons of why the people there are living so long.

Buettner, a former National Geographic explorer, published his findings of previous Blue Zones in a book titled “The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest.” The people of the Blue Zones, though on different continents, each incorporate simple principles into their lives that aid their longevity.

In Icaria those principles were similar.

Each morning at school, the class would go on the Blue Zones Web site, watch videos and look at photos of Buettner and his team meeting new people and continuing in the quest. They talked about what they saw and kept track of it in their journals.

“I’ve enjoyed learning about what to do to live healthy and to live longer,” said student Sara Rasmussen.

In the end, the students learned that Icarians use a lot of wild grains and herbal teas. They have a low sense of time urgency and take daily naps. They maintain living, have a strong sense of community, drink goat’s milk and partake in an Icarian diet.

“People there forget to die,” one student shouted out as the class reviewed the simple longevity secrets. “They’re living such a good life, it just makes them want to live longer.”

Using what they had learned from Buettner’s expedition, the students created posters to illustrate the longevity secrets of the people of Icaria.

One group, made up of Anna Torres, Sara Rasmussen, Mercedes Seltou and Tyler O’Rourke, said they’ve learned the importance of taking naps, which can provide energy. Their poster had each of the simple longevity secrets written on it, along with pictures of vegetables, fruits, people exercising and people taking naps.

Another group, made up of Christian Donahue, Conner Kleinschrodt, Sam Moyer and Taylor Hagen, said they learned that the people in Icaria only eat meat for special occasions. They grow all their own food, and they spend a lot of time with their families.

While some people in Albert Lea only see their grandparents once a month, the people in Icaria see their grandparents every day.

“I think it was really cool to see how the people live and what they do everyday,” Kleinschrodt said.

“Some people say it is the island of longevity,” Moyer added.

The students will present their posters to the class next week.

“They really seemed to have a really good feel and knowledge of Icaria,” Sorlie said. “I think this is exciting. We can be a part of history.”