written by Lesley Chamberlain, 3rd/4th grade teacher The kids and I dove, figuratively speaking, into sugar last week. We finished up our (shocking) sugar posters, which present a sort of “in your face” view of the amount of sugar in various drinks on the grocery store shelves today. On each . . . Read More
written by Gabbi Horst, 1st/2nd grade teacher There were many lessons learned during our cooking projects this week. For example, we learned that onions make your cry, you can’t taste the spinach in smoothies, and mashing food is way more fun than you’d think! We practiced safely using a knife while . . . Read More
written by Missy Green, Toddler 2s teacher Have you ever looked at a certain type of food and thought, “I’m not trying that”? Well, those are the looks I got when I placed certain foods in front of these kids to try. Some squished the food between their fingers. Others literally turned their faces . . . Read More
written by Andrew Olsen, Preschool 3s teacher “I have strawberries! They have seeds; they are fruits.” All week, these are the statements heard during lunch in the Preschool 3s. Seeing the students faces light up when they identify the foods in their lunches shows their deep interest in nutrition. Our . . . Read More
written by Jenny Limburg, Early 3s teacher Cooking is a messy and delicious activity, especially when done with children helping along the way. Whether its slicing fruits, chopping vegetables, or mixing ingredients, the children love to prepare and eat food. When I read the quote, “First we eat, then we . . . Read More
written by Deb Hopkins, Preschool 4s teacher The heavenly scent of basil filled the classroom and school hallways, an indication that the Pre4s were making pesto this week. The preschool kitchen was hectic as preparations for our annual basil harvest got underway. In the outdoor area, the children checked out the basil plants . . . Read More
written by Kerri Tornow, K-1 teacher What is nutrition and why is nutrition important? Nutrition is the study of nutrients in food, how the body uses nutrients, and the relationship between diet, health, and disease. Eating a balanced diet is vital for good health and wellbeing. Food provides our bodies with . . . Read More
written by Mindy Bender-Webster, PreK teacher In PreK we have a very special tradition. Whenever carrots are served during snack time, we just have to read a book about carrots. Recently, we had carrots twice, which gave us the opportunity to read two books about carrots. In case you aren’t sure, this . . . Read More
written by Krina Gobster, Toddler 1s teacher “YUM!” Food is an incredible motivator, especially for toddlers. And at this age is when their pallets are developing and creating opinions while exploring new tastes, textures and temperatures. It is an easy opportunity to discuss likes and dislikes. And with food, our . . . Read More
This photo may seem familiar to some of you. It’s a closeup of one week’s lunch trash we collected last spring. I thought it was worth revisiting. Each September we devote two weeks to our all-school nutrition study. What started as a teacher conversation about developmentally appropriate food practices with . . . Read More