Trend Watch: Healthy Eating
PTOs and PTAs cook up creative ways to promote healthy meals and eating right for students.
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ent groups are trying a variety of approaches to get students interested in healthy foods, including cooking classes, visits to farmers, and of course plenty of free samples.
Kids at a farmers market enjoyed a scavenger hunt during the Barcroft Elementary PTA’s Farm-to-Table Week in Arlington, Va. More than 50 students participated in the June weekend event sponsored by the PTA, where they looked for foods in different colors and had to ask vendors questions about the food they sold.
The next week at school, students made their own pizzas and tasted vegetables straight from a garden. Several local chefs made presentations, including a White House pastry chef and a Top Chef finalist.
Parents and students learned together about nutritious foods at a free family night organized by the International Spanish Language Academy PTO in Minnetonka, Minn. Students from an after-school cooking class gave a healthy cooking demonstration. Attendees could meet local farmers, sample organic milk and ice cream, and get tips for starting a vegetable garden.
The evening had an environmental focus, as well. Families could learn about composting and agricultural pesticides and try their hand at making their own eco-friendly household cleaner.
The PTO at Southeast Elementary in Mansfield Center, Conn., provided $800 to purchase healthy snacks for the entire school during National Nutrition Month in March. For three days each week, kids got to munch on strawberries, bananas, oranges, snow peas, carrots, and other fresh foods.
More healthy school kids resources
Farm-to-Table Week
Kids at a farmers market enjoyed a scavenger hunt during the Barcroft Elementary PTA’s Farm-to-Table Week in Arlington, Va. More than 50 students participated in the June weekend event sponsored by the PTA, where they looked for foods in different colors and had to ask vendors questions about the food they sold.
The next week at school, students made their own pizzas and tasted vegetables straight from a garden. Several local chefs made presentations, including a White House pastry chef and a Top Chef finalist.
Family Fun Night
Parents and students learned together about nutritious foods at a free family night organized by the International Spanish Language Academy PTO in Minnetonka, Minn. Students from an after-school cooking class gave a healthy cooking demonstration. Attendees could meet local farmers, sample organic milk and ice cream, and get tips for starting a vegetable garden.
The evening had an environmental focus, as well. Families could learn about composting and agricultural pesticides and try their hand at making their own eco-friendly household cleaner.
Special Snacks
The PTO at Southeast Elementary in Mansfield Center, Conn., provided $800 to purchase healthy snacks for the entire school during National Nutrition Month in March. For three days each week, kids got to munch on strawberries, bananas, oranges, snow peas, carrots, and other fresh foods.
More healthy school kids resources
