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The Grand défi Pierre Lavoie’s mission is to install healthy life habits in young people through regular physical activity and good nutrition. Since November 2008, the School Tour team has visited elementary schools all across Québec to motivate children to adopt healthier life habits and take part in the Energy Cube Challenge held in May. This tour, which is in its 16^th edition in 2024-2025, takes place throughout the school year.

An unforgettable day

In the morning, to start this special day in a big way, all the students gather in the gymnasium for a dynamic presentation by the School Tour team. During the day, the children have opportunities to do a Zumba, training or yoga activity. Some children do two activities in the Véhicube, a specially outfitted bus parked at the school. They experience the “Eat Better” workshop, an interactive virtual activity to learn more about healthy eating, and the “Move More” workshop, a physical activity on stationary bikes. Other students take part in a classroom workshop, which includes discovering an interactive iPad game also promoting healthy eating.

The Energy Cubes Challenge

The Energy Cubes Challenge is designed to encourage children and their families to be more active during the month of May. Schools and educational childcare services (SGÉE) try to collect as many energy cubes as possible to increase their chance of winning numerous prizes.

How to participate:

• During May, children and school staff must be as physically active as possible to earn the most possible energy cubes for their school.
• Every 15 minutes of uninterrupted physical activity earns one energy cube. The cubes can be earned at school, at the daycare or at home.
• When the child or school staff member is active with one or more members of their immediate family, they earn 1 additional cube for each family member who participates.

To learn more about the challenge or to find inspiring ideas to get moving, visit cubesenergie.com.

The Grand Prize comes to your school!

The ultimate recognition awarded to the schools participating in the Energy Cubes Challenge! The Grand Prize has been reinvented as an unforgettable, unique and colourful celebration. During the month of June, the Grand défi team will criss-cross Québec to meet with young people and present The Grand Prize at the winning schools. Every year, 17 schools from all across the province are treated to an exclusive day of unparalleled activities and surprises.

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The 1 000 KM event is the “adult” component of the Grand défi Pierre Lavoie. It is a spectacular cycling marathon that brings together 1,000 cyclists who ride in relay behind Pierre Lavoie, who, himself, bikes the entire 70-hour circuit in 12 stages that will start on Université Laval Campus. Participants will bike all around Quebec City and its surroundings.

The 1 000 KM event is not merely an athletic feat. For Pierre Lavoie, this event is above all a forum to raise awareness in our society of the importance of changing our life habits to ensure our children’s future.

All of the event’s proceeds are donated to the Grand défi Pierre Lavoie Foundation to support medical research on orphan diseases and to fund projects that promote healthy life habits.

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La Boucle is a cycling event for all ambassadors of healthy living who want to expand the reach of the health movement started by Pierre Lavoie. On June 15^th, make your way to the starting line in Quebec and join 5,000 other cyclists in the Grand Défi. Participants ride a 135-km loop closed to traffic and are joined by the riders from The 1 000 KM event.

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While it’s a running event, it’s also part of the movement for fitness and adopting healthy life habits. The challenge is to run a 270-km relay around the clock from Québec to Montréal. At the finish line, the runners are given a hero’s welcome with a grandiose party to celebrate. Secondary schools, CEGEPs and universities can take part in this unique experience!

For more informations, click here (in French only).

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The goal of The Mini Cube Tour is to stimulate children from the ages of 18 months to 5 years to explore healthy foods and the pleasure of moving. The tour team visits educational childcare services (SGÉE) throughout Québec. The tour ties in with the general aims of the Family Ministry’s reference framework, Gazelle et Potiron, which promotes healthy eating, active play and motor skills development in educational childcare services.

A healthy dose of fun and discoveries

The Mini Cube Tour visits approximately 200 SGÉE each year, bringing a unique and memorable event to the children and staff, entirely for free. The Mini Cube Tour and its Garden of Wonders, a specially retrofitted vehicle, move every day to a different SGÉE. Three explorers encourage the children to explore, run, jump, climb and have fun through various activities. The educators are invited to join in and be explorers too.

 A colorful experience

The mini cube’s visit to a childcare service involves the following activities:

• An outdoor physical activity circuit, depending on the season, integrated into the childcare service’s setting
• An exploration activity and hunt for energy cubes inside the Garden of Wonders
• An “I eat with my senses” workshop during snack-time or mealtime
• An encounter with our puppets and explorers
• A thematic movement and action song
• A surprise gift, encouraging being active, given to each child and childcare centre at the end of the day
• Lists of activities suitable for the season received by mail after The Mini Cube Tour visit.

For more information or to apply for your childcare service, click here.

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Supported by

The goal of La Petite Expé is to introduce young people from all backgrounds to the pleasure of cross-country skiing and to encourage them to be more active during the winter. The many partnering centres all across Québec provide rental equipment (cross-country skis, boots and poles) and access to their trails at no cost to elementary schools and all children 12 years of age or younger.

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La Grande Marche is a free event open to everyone. As friends, as family, and with their family doctor, the walkers complete a 5-km loop in the participating cities and towns.

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Force 4
Force 4 is a support program for schools that provides equipment and ideas to get young people to move for at least one hour per day. Force 4 ties in with the Ministry of Education’s budgetary measure called “À l’école, on bouge au cube”, which aims to encourage primary school students to be physically active at least 60 minutes per day – the length of time recommended by the World Health Organisation for children.

The web-TV that gets schools moving!
Web-TV is the core component of the Force 4 program, with daily broadcasts of playful, inspiring, meaningful episodes to get children moving at school. This web-TV is available at no cost to all schools in the school system. Designed with the constraints and reality of Québec primary school teachers in mind, it is an ideal turnkey tool that facilitates planning activity breaks in the classroom. In addition, with its 723 episodes released to date, there is no doubt that there is something for everyone on the Force 4 platform!

In addition to this selection of clips, the Force 4 à ton école series, filmed throughout the province, highlights the best initiatives schools have taken to be active 60 minutes per day! After four seasons, more than 1,157 schools took part in the Force 4 program and over 150 schools will have been visited by the series’ hosts. Take advantage of the visibility our platform offers to inspire other school teachers and educators to become part of the movement for a healthier lifestyle!

The Grand Recess
To celebrate all the efforts that teachers and their students are investing in being active throughout the year, Force 4 and the Grand défi Pierre Lavoie are preparing a big end-of-year party in June for all elementary school students in Quebec. In 2021, the La Grande récré free webcast program had over 153,000 views throughout this festive day on www.lagranderécré.tv.

Because moving is good for your health, Grand défi is launching the mission to cover at least one million kilometres by cycling, running, swimming, walking or climbing. The 1,000,000 KM Together event is for everyone, regardless of age or physical condition. Anything is possible!

Participants must complete the challenge alone or in a group, at their own pace and near their homes. Elementary and high-school students across the province are also encouraged to get out into the fresh air to rack up the kilometres. The 1,000,000 KM Together website is the rallying point for all participants and shows our progress in real time as we cover the kilometres to reach the ultimate goal. It’s motivating and unifying! There’s no reason not to be part of this movement as we promote healthy life habits.