Klasse2000 is the largest program in German elementary schools aimed at promoting healthy living and preventing violence and addiction. It inspires children´s interest in a healthy lifestyle and equips them with the knowledge, attitude and ability to do so. Topics discussed include nutrition, exercise, relaxation, life skills and saying 'no' to tobacco and alcohol.

About the Program

Klasse2000 supports children aged 6 to 10 continuously from elementary school grades 1 to 4. Approximately twelve Klasse2000 educational units per grade are taught by class teachers who have received specialized in-depth and field-tested training proposals. Another two to three units are taught by external Klasse2000 health care professionals, most of whom work on a freelance basis. These specialists have a background in medicine or pedagogy and receive specialized training for their Klasse2000 assignments. New topics introduced to the classes by these health care professionals are later examined in more detail by the class teachers. The children love the external visitors, the games and the interesting materials they bring, and they develop a very positive attitude towards matters of health as a result. Parents are involved in the program by being invited to attend parent's evenings and are provided with explanatory letters and magazines. In addition, participating children are given tasks to complete at home which have been developed to encourage family discussions on numerous health-related issues.

Klasse2000 is funded through donations, mostly in the form of sponsorships for individual classes. You can support children's health by becoming the sponsor of one or many classes.

Background

Klasse2000 was founded in 1991 at the Clinical center in Nuremberg. It began with 235 classes in the federal state of Bavaria. Today, the program serves children in all of Germany´s 16 federal states and reaches 15 % of all the classes in elementary schools: more than 480,000 children in 21,200 classes. 

The responsible body for Klasse2000 is a nonprofit-organization (Verein Programm Klasse2000 e. V.), founded in 2003. In 2005, it received the German Charity Seal (Spenden-Siegel), which confirms transparency and economic handling of donations.

Klasse2000 works

Evaluation shows the long-term positive impact of Klasse2000.  A longitudinal study compared Klasse2000 children with a control group between 2005 and 2008, in 2009 and 2011. Results demonstrated the positive effects of Klasse2000, mainly concerning the consumption of alcohol and tobacco three years after the end of the program: former Klasse2000 children have less experiences with smoking (7,9%, compared to 19,7% of the control group) and with binge drinking (21,4 towards 48,2%).

From 2013 to 2015, a randomized longitudinal study examining the program´s impact on nutrition and physical activity was conducted and showed positive results. Look here for detailed informations.