wdbj7 anchor nadia singh visited one school district that's doing that and hometown health. jean, the legislation kindergarten through right now, the senate has passed its version and the bill got preliminary house approval wednesday, despite criticism that it could be overload for teachers and school districts to implement. here in our area, botetourt county schools, make sure its students get 150 minutes of physical beverly heart/physical education teacher "whether we do it in a physical education class or we do it during an extra curricular or recess time, you know, they get recess every day for 20 minutes. we do meet the requirements here in botetourt county." beverly heart mixes up her physical education classes here at troutville elementary school. beverly heart/physical education teacher " i do a lot of cross- curricular things as far as integrating with the kids so i do a lot of classroom activities with whatever they may be focusing on." she also focuses on teaching these little ones the importance of getting and staying it stimulates the brain, plus it teaches you

wdbj7 anchor nadia singh has some tips on how to avoid becoming a victim. jean, we saw terrible tornado damage over the last couple of days in appomattox county and patrick county. just a couple weeks ago we dealt with fallen trees and other damage from winter weather. now is when people claiming to be in the business of helping homeowners could look to cash in. "it's a time when folks that maybe licenses in place may knock on your door and offer to take care of the problems that you have. and if you're left with devastating damage like what we've seen in appomattox county, that's likely a welcome offer, but that's when we really have to be very wary and make sure to get the right person to the work." if not, it could make matters worse. they could ask you for money all the money up front, they may even want to take you to the bank to get cash, they don't want to accept a check from you." two huge red flags, but that's not all. as you pick up the pieces whether severe or not, others are looking to capitalize. they don't' want to give you a written contract,

in roanoke, nadia singh, wdbj7. we've learned that the power is back on completely and the zoo will re-open on friday. temperatures soar to the 60s by the weekend. but meteorologist brent watts says winter is far from over. complete details of your first alert forecast andall snow melting away the severe downtown roanoke and you can see that the skies it cleared out looking good across erie was sherry the time lapse from wytheville love check out the beautiful blanket of snow on the ground want to happen sue it is the day goes on it starts melting away we at those temperatures up to the thirties and forties today think by the end of the week most of this is going to be gone with the exception of linger but you be of the 60s by the weekend. right now. danville 29 the cold spot and hot springs with some lighter snow showers the to been moving through the week little disturbance. most of it up up across the great lakes he could see some clout cover that's a streaming into the mountains of spilling over soaks what have

in roanoke, nadia singh, wdbj7. from wind chill advisories to shoveling snow. the first alert weather team and our kidcaster zach have a lot to tell you. here is a look at the highs, lows and precipitation at the regional airports. we are back with the complete first alert forecast after this racing season is forecasteubanks is accurate or not that's the way to stay warm put on your best move and stay out of these winds which are ranging anywhere from twenty nine mile an hour gus and galax to thirty one bluefield 25 up in hot springs is given via windy night it is good to be a cold night temperatures would be dropping off quickly appomattox is arty down twenty six degrees two points are low and so that temperature can problem this evening especially as the air gets a little bit dryer and then up through the overnights from most locations will be dealing with this evening flurries. the decreasing clouds single digits for bluefield the lewisburg up to hot springs midteens from lexington to lynchburg 19 toronto 12 in blacksburg twenty one in martinsville and twent

wdbj7 anchor nadia singh tells us about this special dual enrollment program aimed at making college more affordable and accessible. chris, it's called the early college high school program and it's a joint effort between the alleghany county public schools and dabney s. lancaster community college. the goal? to offer new options to get more students excited about higher learning. gene kotulka/alleghany schools superintendent "our students at alleghany high school are able to enroll in this program where in may they would graduate, the seniors would graduate, with their high school associates degree." that means the first two years of college are under their belts, before they even leave these halls. gene kotulka/alleghany schools superintendent "our two curriculum departments have worked together to come up with a program and it's a program in general studies and it's humanities." like the region's governor's school but instead of stem, there's a concentration on general studies. "we like to provide our students many different pathways and this provides certain students a pathway to

nadia singh, wdbj7. next on wdbj7. roanoke city's police, fire, and sheriff's departments come together for a special graduation. tonight we check in one last time with the gto cadets. 14:12:36 when he was two and half years old 38 we had an old piano he was up on his tippy toes playing the the piano 44 now her son- ross copperman-- is up for acm songwriter seven men and women graduated from the growth through opportunity program in roanoke city today. it's been a four month long journey for each graduate. wdbj7's amanda kenney has been following them since the beginning. there's no doubt these cadets have grown and have been given opportunities they may not have had if it wasn't for the program. but the past four months have all led up to this moment today at graduation. it was a packed house. full of police officers, firefighter, and deputies. a rare moment for these first responders to be together, for a happy occasion. but it was all for roanoke city's gto cadets. ricky, ben, kathryn, kayla, brian, micheal, and ale

wdbj7 anchor nadia singh reports. cindy williams/actress "if they had a theater at the end of every school in this nation you would just see people flourish." these covington high school students got to hear words like that from veteran actress cindy williams, best known for her role as shirley feeney on laverne and shirley. we met up with her as she prepares to take the stage at curfman hall as louise in always patsy cline. cindy williams/actress "being on this stage in this auditorium, this theater it just takes me back to my high school and doing plays in high school." the play, written by ted swindley puts williams opposite jacqueline petroccia as the iconic patsy cline. jacqueline petroccia/actress "i did all kinds of research and read every book and i went to winchester and did my research there and went to nashville and did my research there and i really feel like i have a connection with her." both actresses believe that shows in smaller venues bring a certain feel to the production. cindy williams/actress " d

wdbj7 anchor nadia singh tells us why parents are grateful for the program. christy paderick/katie's place "we are a non-profit day support program." that allows young adults like eva, shannon and tyler the opportunity to learn and grow. lisa crowder/parent "it gives them a place. it gives them a place in the community, it helps them to integrate out into the community and they make friends, they have a life, just like you and i do." lisa crowder and her shannon love coming to katie's place. lisa crowder/parent he's here. i'm happy that there's an opportunity like this in the community for everyone." katie's place leaders say they're striving to help those with developmental disabilities lead fulfilling lives. christy paderick/katie's place "each individual is just like you and i" christy paderick/katie's place "you don't see the disability, you see the person so that's why we're here to provide services for them." and teaching them things many take for granted. christy paderick/katie's place " life skills, social skills, relationship skills, activities of da

wdbj7 anchor nadia singh is working on a story for 6 about how people try to take advantage of that. jean, it's a vulnerable time for homeowners anytime there's damage to the place they call home. whether it's severe or just a fallen tree, you still have to be careful about who you hire. the more severe the damage, the more unqualified workmen try to cash in on your bad luck. coming at 6 we'll hear about what you should be looking out for as you look for work, jean. for the latest weather anytime, turn to our webpage at wdbj7.com and be sure to follow us on facebook and twitter for weather headlines and more at wdbj7weather. thank you for choosing your hometown news leader, wdbj7. we'll see you at six. starring andy griffith... with ronny howard.

i'm nadia singh. appomattox county continues the clean- up after wednesday's tornado ripped through the area. wdbj7's christian heilman talked with a church community the storm hit their congregation. well nadia, the storm ripped off parts of the roof, smashing windows. today, church members were out trying to clean up as best they could. it doesn't take long to see that the congregation at evergreen united methodist is close knit. gus paulette "it's not just people that we just see on sunday morning. it's people we interconnect with in our lives every day. " gus paulette grew up sitting in this sanctuary now under repair after wednesday's deadly storms. gus paulette "these things, you see on tv. these things that you see happens in the midwest and down south." the damage is difficult to imagine, but for paulette's neighbors, it's a reality. gus paulette "you know where someone's house was at. margaret grishaw's house is gone. the store that richard hamilton and his brother built. gone." the physical d

i'm nadia singh. we're just hours away from republican presidential candidate marco rubio's campaign stop in roanoke. wdbj7's christian heilman joins us live from roanoke college where the presidential hopeful will be soon. nadia, senator marco rubio will be speaking inside the bast center here on the college's campus. it's scheduled to begin at 8:30. his trip comes less than 48 hours before the start of super tuesday. the latest cbs news poll shows rubio still has plenty of ground to make up if he wants to do well in virginia. rubio is in second place -- trailing donald trump by 13 points. he's taken a sharper tone in over the last week or so -- calling trump a con artist during campaign stops and interviews. we talked with some folks out on roanoke college's campus this afternoon. they don't necessarily support rubio, but they're interested in what he has to say. cullen truett, coming to hear rubio " it's about doing citizen. everybody bases their support on what they get on heresay, but they don't a

wdbj7's nadia singh joins me tonight to talk more about this issue that impacts more people than you might realize. jean, cutting is a form of self-harm that some use to deal with anxiety and other problems. psychologists say cutting and anxiety can go hand-in-hand. there are many misconceptions about self-harming, cutting and mental illness and crime. we'd like to address some of them. dr. lyn day "it's a stigmatizing concept to think that if you're mentally ill then you're more prone to violence or violent behavior, which is not true. it's a myth." dr. lyn day is a psychologist who's dealt with patients like in the nicole lovell death investigation. she also has a history of cutting. "cutters are internalizing their pain and internalizing their anger. "they use the physical act of pain to distract them from the psychological pain." keepers told a judge on thursday that she had a history of self- harming. she even got this tattoo as part of a pact to never cut again. but self harm doesn't always mean violence to others. "we worry about what their potential for suicide might be, for

wdbj 7 nadia singh spoke to some of the people going to monday's rally. >> it's no secret that donald trump has diehard supporters and opponents. the rally is not a university sanctioned event, but students are definitely part. crowd. >> i don't feel like he should be a politician. i don't feel like he should be running for president honestly. as a woman and a person of color, i just don't feel like he represents me and i don't feel like i want to be represented by this individual. >> no doubt trump has seen blow back from his views on everything from immigration to defense. but not everyone is ready to say america great again. >> i'm not for him, but i'm not against him. i am really minimumn it. >> while radford university students are happy to get their school into a spotlight, they're going in cautiously. >> i definitely wanting to. i'm going to hear what he says, but i want to take it with a grain of salt. >> some say they're not injure trump represents their america. the younger people are, leak, the more progressive they are, i guess. and he's just not a progressive person. >> b

wdbj7 anchor, nadia singh is live at the hotel with more. jean, the hotel has been a double tree property for years which is owned by hilton. this will be the first curio hotel in virginia. a distinction that brings a more upscale and luxurious feel. gary walton/general finding unique, select, independent hotels that have great character, great story, great history." everything this majestic property is known for. the hope is the distinction will draw even more people into its 130 year legacy. chris nassetta/hilton president & ceo "it's a perfect match because the hotel roanoke is such a unique hotel, you walk in, it has an iconic history, well over 100 years, the team here is amazing." curio was launched about 2 years ago and hopes to highlight some of the most distinctive hotels around the world. chris nassetta/hilton president & ceo " the idea with curio is really taking hotels that have really unique attributes, like the hotel roanoke that are almost like a brand onto themselves." and, bring more corporate business into the region, a win

good evening, i'm nadia singh. the cold air weather tomorrow. forher and a a a a a an a in that yes nokia already very cold temperatures in place: is there we have seen yet to feel like temperatures in the single digits and below zero for many along and west of the blue ridge and it's feeling like negative two degrees off i am blacksburg nine in lewisburg electric seventeen in hot springs so be sure you would do whatever you can do to dave works because we are going to stay very cold over the next twelve hours temperatures tomorrow afternoon will only fay mills over twenty city sure you dress appropriately as are having operating valentine's day plans the good news is the snow will hold off for sunday afternoon at five till sunday night will be our first few snowflakes it's all from this this am that swinging through the upper level trough that would bring it down to the south and east you can see right now are the code uswere the snow is falling across the code us doubts i live in parts of illinois that is the same system. no impact us and abou

good evening, i'm nadia singh. the cold air