Promoção da saúde por meio de atividades educativas sobre hábitos de sono

A good night sleep is part of a healthy lifestyle. However, children and adolescents replace sleeping hours by several other activities. This project aimed to disseminate information about sleeping and stimulate some reflections about the risk factors to health arising frompersonal and collective habits. A group of 1014 junior high school students from five schools in the city of Assis-SP, participated in the project. The students visited an exhibition about the theme "sleeping and health" and took part of group assignments. Issues related to sleeping and alternatives to promote healthy sleeping habits in day-life context were discussed. The activities were planned and executed by six trainees under the supervision of the responsible teacher. The majority of the visitors reported pleasure (90% of students) and interest in the subject; (85%) enjoyed learning new information about it (93%). Among the activities performed, 25% of visitors particularly enjoyed playful educational activities, 19% the oral presentation and 23% all the activities without distinction. Group discussion on everyday situations encouraged the adolescents to reevaluate previous experiences and knowledge that were not always consistent with current scientific knowledge. Undergraduate students had a rich practical opportunity that stimulated them to create health education strategies for adolescents. Some adolescents got more involved in the activities and others were more stimulated by the change of school routine. The activities were feasible and can be designed according to the target public. Certainly individual experience was sporadic and we suggest that future projects might be improved by stimulating bigger schools and more teachers to participate.