Golden Apple Teacher Ulrike Kerstges

ABUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Kids in Ulrike Kerstges' PE class at Ventana Ranch Elementary School are doing more than just playing basketball.  They're burning calories, getting their heart rates up and staying healthy, she hopes, into and through adulthood.

"You need to learn this when you're young so that you feel confident," Kerstges said.  "And you know when you fall as a little kid, you don't fall quite as bad as when you're an adult."

But even more important, Kerstges is getting these kids to exercise now and teaching them how it helps their bodies and why.

"Everything we teach is health-related fitness," she told KRQE News 13.  "S o how does it affect your endurance?  So why is this exercise good for your body?  Which part of body do we attack here?  We're working on abs.  We're working on core strength.  Are we working on flexibility?  Are we working on cardio endurance?"

When KRQE News 13 visited the kids were working on a mix of all that and more while celebrating the fact that their teacher now has a Golden Apple Award to honor her for all her hard work. 

It's work that she might not have done if she decided to follow her other passion: theology.

"You got to pray to do some of these crazy things we do, right?" she said.

Kerstges hopes it's those crazy things that'll keep kids healthy and exercising now and for the rest of their lives.

Kerstges teaches more than 700 kids at both Tierra Antigua and Ventana Ranch elementary schools.