Introduction message for On-line Activity Reports
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Introduction message for On-line Activity Reports
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An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Ellen Jennings
For the eighth graders to develop an awareness of the impact of nutrition, that practicing good nutrition isn't difficult, and for them to make a positive contribution to the community as health educators.
Contact Person: Ellen Jennings
Contact Person’s Title: Family and Consumer Science Teacher
This was Ellen Jennings' idea. It was instituted during the 1999-2000 school year. She wanted to have an activity that would promote the abilities of the 8th graders to perform in a mature role, in a realistic situation.
Eighth grade FCS students, local Kindergarten students, local pre-school students.
(This activity is conducted four times every school year: once each marking period. Ms. Jennings works with a new group of FCS students each marking period. A similar activity is also conducted with Head Start students who visit the FCS classroom.)
There are eight nutrition learning stations, each centered around a bin of materials needed to present a nutrition activity to young children Team Nutrition materials, library books, magazines, web sites, etc. for activity ideas Bins contain: children's books about food and nutrition-related topics, other materials required for each activity, such as toasters, fruit puppets, crayons Bins also contain food; primarily fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grain products.
One-time costs:
Costs incurred for each occurrence:
Ms. Jennings always evaluates every student's performance, the students rate themselves and their groups, and guests (usually the kindergarten teachers) are invited to rate the activity overall. Ms. Jennings provides an evaluation form for this. The class received a "thank-you cake" once.
Go for it. Parents, students, and teachers have all commented on the improvement in the attitude of students. Test scores are expected to go up and disciplinary problems are expected to go down as participation levels improve.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Carol Gilbert
Contact Person: Carol Gilbert
Contact Person’s Title: Director of Child Nutrition
School Nutrition Activity Report
The school received a PDE grant to support nutrition activities. A need to revamp the district's nutrition curriculum guided the writing of the proposal that was submitted. Brainstorming by the grant committee resulted in the development of this and many other nutrition-related activities for elementary students.
Entire student body of the school along with all faculty and staff.
Each grade level signed up for a month in which they wanted to participate. Students were selected for participation by their classroom teachers. Each student prepared an announcement, which was reviewed by the teacher. One student per day provided a nutrition message during the regular morning announcements via the public address system.
Resource materials to prepare the nutrition announcements.
None.
This was conducted during the daily morning announcement process.
Comments from students, cafeteria staff, and teachers included:
No changes are necessary.
Be clear that the announcement is to be brief and that it is to be about nutrition and healthy living.
A Team Nutrition Grant/Showcase Schools activity at the Sacred Heart School
For each 7th grade language arts student to write an informational story book that contains nutrition facts that younger children can understand.
The research phase took about a week. The writing-in-class phase took about a month. This entire process took about 6 weeks.
Activity Lead: Mrs. Catalfano
Contact Person’s Title: xth grade homeroom teacher and Language Arts teacher for grades 6, 7, and 8.
School Nutrition Activity Report
The teacher, Mrs. Catalfano, came across a similar idea in a magazine. She adapted it to the nutrition theme.
Seventh grade Language Arts students, Kindergarten, 1st grade, and 2nd grade students.
Resource materials to prepare the nutrition announcements.
Mrs. Catalfano feels that her students achieved the goals she had for them: to publish a book and learn more about nutrition.
The book-making students "knew all the answers" when a dietition visited the school to present an assembly about nutrition
The young children enjoyed having the books read to them and they have demonstrated learning from the project
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Carol Gilbert
To provide the students with an understanding of what takes place behind the serving line, what equipment is used, the quantity of food prepared, and the sanitation methods in place to safeguard their meals.
Contact Person: Carol Gilbert
Contact Person’s Title: Director of Child Nutrition
School Nutrition Activity Report
School Nutrition Plan developed by a team.
Entire student population.
Tours are conducted by the cafeteria manager and/or her assistant. Pieces of equipment are identified and related to what students might find in their home kitchens. When they reach the hand washing sink, two student volunteers are selected to participate in hand washing using Glo-Germ (a flourescent non-toxic product that allows for great visualization of clean vs. unclean hands).
Two students put Glo-germ on their hands and then wash them; one thoroughly, the other like most kids do. The kitchen lights are turned off and the students use the black light to see that there are many more "germs" on the hastily-washed hands.
$70.
The cafeteria manager contacted teachers via e-mail and a notice in the teacher bulletin to invite them to schedule their classes for tours of the kitchen.
Students are impressed and have been asking many questions. Every class has asked these two questions of the manager -- "Do you like your job?" and "Do you cook at home?" (Both are answered positively and enthusiastically!)
Student meal counts have risen. We think this may be in part because we have reduced a bit of the "mystery" of what lies behind the serving line wall.
Provide opportunities for more students to wash their hands.
Be sure to plan the tours at 'safe' times in the kitchen. We found that 9 - 9:30 a.m. worked well at our school.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Debbie Neal, SFNS
To bring the cafeteria into the classroom and strengthen ties between the two.
Contact Person: Debbie Neal
Contact Person’s Title: SFNS
School Nutrition Activity Report
The teacher could not find coverage for both the foods unit and the sewing units while on a 3-day field trip so, since we've worked together before (class tours of kitchen, Guest chef, etc.) she asked if I would do a demo and supervise students' Chicken Stir-fry preparations in her absence.
Eighth grade Family and Consumer Science Class.
Chicken Stir-fry ingredients.
Nothing extra – ingredients were purchased using the general teaching fund.
This was the regular class agenda for this time frame.
Students were very attentive and asked many appropriate questions. On the second day they prepped for cooking. Food was cooked when the teacher returned.
Food Service Manager would also be available when the actual cooking is performed.
Be prepared for anything and keep a sense of humor. Most of the students have no idea what they are doing. They didn't pay close attention to the preliminary discussion, so be prepared to do "on-the-job" training.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Carol Gilbert
Contact Person: Carol Gilbert
Contact Person’s Title: Director of Child Nutrition
School Nutrition Activity Report
When Carol first started at Hempfield 15 years ago they had Apple Celebrations. One year she visited each cafeteria as Johnny Appleseed. The word still spreads each year among the teachers that she will visit as Johnny. The activity was started to link the cafeteria to the classroom at the elementary level, as part of their Johnny Appleseed Celebrations.
Elementary, grades K–2.
Two Dollars or more for apples, depending on how you incorporate them into the activities. Student interaction . . . PRICELESS!
The teachers remind each other about it every year by word-of-mouth.
The high level of student involvement is a gauge of the effectiveness of the activity. Students often send a "Thank You" note reflecting their enthusiasm for the visit.
Nothing. Everything works great!
You have to be able to go with the flow, be quick on your feet and ready to respond to all kinds of questions!
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Gloria J. Clawson
To raise participation by creating a kid–friendly menu calendar for elementary students. The full–school year calendar can be permanently hung on the kitchen wall, and not lost or misplaced like the "refrigerator" menu sheets.
Contact Person: Gloria J. Clawson
Contact Person’s Title: Director of Child Nutrition
School Nutrition Activity Report
Gloria read about a similar calendar produced in Texas and liked the idea to try to boost participation. She believes if the young children know what's for lunch, they are more apt to purchase lunch. Gloria began by searching for ideas and activities to be placed on the calendar. The school district uses a 6–week cycle that allows for a manager's choice to try new products or use up extra commodity, so she was able to create the menus for the entire year.
Elementary school students.
First, you need to be able to create your menus for the year (A bonus too, if you can add your summer food menus). Next, you must search thoroughly for the proper activities, pictures, etc. to be placed on the calendar. Finally, you must work closely with the printer to pull it all together. The calendars were professionally printed complete with lunch and breakfast menus, educational nutrition activities, school holidays and possible snow make–up days, along with summer food menus.
The calendars were distributed through the Parent–Teacher Group, which helped sponsor the project. Each family in the school received a calendar.
The full results have not been evaluated yet. This is the first year (2002–2003) that the calendar has been in use. The printer is very proud of the finished product and featured it in their January newsletter.
Gloria would have started earlier. She didn't get the idea until late summer and the calendar didn't come out until early November.
Search for educational activities throughout the year. After having produced this calendar, Gloria looks at magazines, articles, etc., with a different frame of mind.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Joyce Ciarla
Ms. Joyce Ciarla, supervisor of food service, used breakfast as a vehicle to introduce the new middle school principal to the student body. As a benefit, these breakfasts with the principal made the students, parents, and community aware of the school's existing breakfast program. The weekly get–togethers opened the door to a series of alternative breakfast ideas including a grab–and–go breakfast in the classroom.
The current plan is to finish the school year with a free grab–and–go breakfast for the entire school, after the series of 21 "breakfasts with the principal" are over in April.
Contact Person: Joyce Ciarla
Contact Person’s Title: Supervisor of Food Service
School Nutrition Activity Report
After receiving a grant and "Got Milk" coolers to help increase breakfast participation during the 2001– 2002 school year, Joyce began to introduce alternative breakfast delivery ideas in the schools to encourage breakfast participation.
At this time, the school district hired Mr. William Hume as principal for the middle school. He believes in the importance of good nutrition practices in school environments. Mr. Hume knew that Joyce was trying to increase breakfast participation in the district, and he thought a complimentary breakfast with each homeroom would offer a great opportunity to build relationships.
Grades 5 – 8.
Joyce asked the high school nutrition advisory council to get involved. These students offered some suggestions and actually distributed the food in the middle school to kick off the grab–and–go program. As a result, breakfast participation increased by at least 40% the first year. With the addition of Mr. Hume, breakfast participation rose even higher (close to 50%). In addition to the "breakfast with the principal" program, Joyce incorporated grab–and–go for certain events such as Student Appreciation Week, National School Breakfast Week, and testing days. Breakfast participation remained relatively.
In the beginning of the 2001–2002 school years Mr. Hume and Joyce decided on a schedule for the entire year. Each week an invitation was sent to a homeroom teacher inviting the class and teacher to have breakfast with the middle school principal after homeroom. The school newspaper ran a story promoting the program as well as the local newspapers, which published articles about the program and the importance of breakfast in the school system.
The children have a great relationship with the principal and great respect for the cafeteria staff. Joyce and her staff enjoy listening to the children and, in some instances, providing something important that they may not be getting at home. The Mahanoy Area School District free and reduced percentage is 63%. Joyce feels the nutrition some of the children are receiving here is much needed and appreciated!
Joyce would like to encourage the other district principals to have a similar program. They have had many other breakfast programs within the district, and the principals have been very supportive. The high school principal has had some breakfasts with the student council and honor society. Likewise, the elementary principal has joined the children in breakfast events.
Bring a group of children together to form a Nutrition Advisory Council. Put together a detailed analysis of the wants and needs of the student body to get the support of your principals and superintendent. In the end, it is difficult for principals and superintendents to argue against numbers on paper and the voices of the students.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Katie Leach
To measure amounts of salt, sugar, and fat in foods sold in the school snack shop, as well as to find the healthiest choices for snacks.
Contact Person: Katie Leach
Contact Person’s Title: Teacher
School Nutrition Activity Report
As a teacher and mother of three, Katie was appalled to see students rejecting nutritious meals for all kinds of junk food. After reading an article in Family Fun magazine about a mother who measured out some of the ingredients of her child's food to show its nutritive content, Katie came up with the idea to measure the ingredients in the school's snack shop foods.
Grades 3–8, parents and teachers.
One sample of each snack sold in the snack shop was obtained. The school’s "Math and Nutrition" team members looked on the back of the packaging for each item and recorded the calories, the salt, the fat, and the sugar content for one serving. The salt and shortening was measured in Petri dishes for each item. The sugar was measured and placed in a vial with a lid. Each Petri dish and vial was labeled with the amount in grams for one serving. Each snack shop item was taped to a box lid and surrounded with the corresponding salt, sugar, and fat containers.
The team gathered baseline data by recording everything that was purchased from the snack shop for three days before the display was put up.
On display day, the boxes were arranged in groups outside the doorway of the snack room. All the ice cream varieties (just the wrappers!) were in two boxes, the chips and pretzels were together in another box, and so on. A bulletin board with charts containing the information the team collected was posted behind the boxes. The empty spaces surrounding the charts were covered with all the wrappers collected during the course of the project.
To test the effectiveness of the display, student store purchases were recorded again for three days after it was taken down. Students made charts and graphs to represent the results.
Most equipment was borrowed from one of the school's science teachers. The salt, shortening, and sugar cost approximately $5.
In the beginning of the 2001–2002 school years Mr. Hume and Joyce decided on a schedule for the entire year. Each week an invitation was sent to a homeroom teacher inviting the class and teacher to have breakfast with the middle school principal after homeroom. The school newspaper ran a story promoting the program as well as the local newspapers, which published articles about the program and the importance of breakfast in the school system.
Data collected before and after the display was up were compared. Results of this comparison indicated that the display did not have as much impact on student buying habits as was hoped. Sales of high fat ice cream went down significantly, which was the most obvious change resulting from the project.
A major victory for this project came three months after the initial display. The school nurse organized a health fair. Three of the "Math and Nutrition" displays of the snack shop items were presented at the fair. Accompanying the displays were samples of fat-free and/or low calorie alternatives. Fair attendees could taste the fat-free and/or low calorie items, which were very well received. Judging from their comments, (see below), there was a big change in the awareness of food content. Katie hopes displays like this will lead to more healthy eating habits.
The math component of this project was a fantastic tool. Through weighing the items, calculating the highest and lowest amounts, and charting and graphing, the students had an opportunity to hone skills they will always use.
This project has provided the students with a way to affect their own nutrition environment: the snack shop has offered more healthy items since the project began. “They have had kiwi and mangos, and baked (not fried) chips. Other healthy items are on the way.” Says Katie, “I really praise our head of the cafeteria, Vicky Stahr! She keeps working on healthier choices!”
Katie would like to set up the "Math and Nutrition" exhibition on a day less far in advance of the health fair.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Garry R. Dixson
Contact Person: Garry R. Dixson
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
When Garry Dixson was interviewed for the position of food service director for Penns Manor School District. During the interview process, Mr. Dixson learned that a school board member was interested in starting a breakfast program for the high school. The superintendent and the business manager were also interested. They all felt the need to feed more students, especially those who qualified for free and reduced price meals. They were aware of the benefits of breakfast, especially the boost to learning, and they knew they could generate additional funds by starting a high school breakfast program. It also just made sense to them that if the elementary students were being offered breakfast, the high school students should also be offered breakfast.
All High School Students in the District.
Mr. Dixson used the existing elementary breakfast program as a model for the new high school program. Both could be considered "traditional" in that the students eat in the cafeteria before classes begin. A quality meal is provided, with more options at the high school than at the elementary level. Mr. Dixson makes sure to include foods that are student favorites, which entice even the older students to participate.
Experimentation with different formats for serving breakfast has yielded varied results. At one point, the elementary breakfast was served to everyone, all–at–once, right after they got off of the busses. Participation dropped sharply during this phase, and Mr. Dixson met with students to learn why. It turned out that many had stopped coming for breakfast because they were not able to take personal items to their lockers before going to the cafeteria. Students (and their parents) objected to the need to keep these items with them while they ate breakfast. They also felt that the lines were too long when everyone was in the cafeteria at the same time. To correct these problems, the students now come to the cafeteria for breakfast in three shifts:
Mr. Dixson has conducted other experiments that have been successful from the start. For instance, because students enjoy variations in the menu, he has devised a system to keep breakfast interesting for them. His system, however, is a little different from those at most other schools. He has found that his students like to know that he serves the same items every Monday (French Toast), Tuesday (Pancakes), and Wednesday (Breakfast Pizza). Thursday and Friday are the days when he varies what is served and he tries new items. In addition to this system for varying the menu, Mr. Dixson also has alternative items every day, such as cereal and yogurt, to accommodate students who want school breakfast but don’t like the advertised items.
While expenditures naturally rose due to the need to buy more food and related supplies, the increased costs associated with providing the high school with a breakfast program have been offset by the benefits the program has produced. Of course, participation in the school meals program has increased, bringing with it higher rates of government reimbursements. Add to that the health and educational benefits experienced by students who eat breakfast, and Mr. Dixson believes his program is well worth the cost.
One potential new cost that Mr. Dixson deftly avoided was labor. His high school is attached to the only elementary school in the district, so the elementary foodservice workers who come in to serve breakfast to the young students simply come an hour earlier, now, to also serve at the high school. These same people then leave work an hour earlier in the afternoon than they did before the high school breakfast program started. Mr. Dixson’s solution to the labor question is a testament to the creativity and flexibility demonstrated by foodservice departments when facing barriers to school breakfast success.
Mr. Dixson employed several methods to promote the new program, including announcements, a newsletter, and the school menu. What he thinks brought the most business was word–of–mouth promotion. He talked to students in the hall about the program, much the way restaurant managers meet with their guests. He encouraged student athletes to eat breakfast because 1.) athletes need good nutrition and 2.) athletes are usually leaders, so other students would eat breakfast if the athletes did. In all cases, Mr. Dixson emphasized the social aspects of breakfast-time and how students could benefit socially by participating.
The other branch of Mr. Dixson’s word–of–mouth campaign was the Student Council’s Cafeteria Committee. He advises these students, who meet once a month. Several members of the committee are enthusiastic about breakfast and they helped him to promote the program and recruit customers. He told them to spread the word that it would be “cool” to eat breakfast at school. Mr. Dixson appealed to their pride, too, with the challenge that as student leaders, they could expect others to follow their lead in eating school breakfast.
If he had it to do all over again, Mr. Dixson would start with a free breakfast for every student during the first week, to better promote the program.
A Parent Best Practice
Contact Person: Cindy O'Hora, parent & Kevin Oswald, Foodservice Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
Parent Cindy O'Hora met Food Service Director Kevin Oswald at a school board meeting. Cindy was new to the area and offered to use her web development experience to help the district improve its web site. Kevin was very busy and wanted the Food Service web pages updated, so he took Cindy up on her offer.
Students, their families, the community.
Because Cindy donated her time and expertise, and because the computer equipment and district personnel were already in place, there was no additional cost to the school district for development of these web pages.
A Parent Best Practice
These Philadelphia parents fought for resolution of nutrition issues on several levels:
Contact Person: Pat Albright, Roslyn McQueen, Jill Saull - Parents
School Nutrition Activity Report
Three parents became involved in issues related to school nutrition through different routes, then merged their energies with those of the city-wide Home and School Council and the school nutrition Task Force of the Philadelphia Food Trust. This organized strategy resulted in positive changes to the nutrition environment in several pilot schools and the district's rejection of a contract offer from Coca-Cola.
A lot of time preparing for and in meetings.
Pat Albright
Pat's concerns about school nutrition began when her child was attending nursery school. She eventually learned about the Coke contract while serving on the city-wide Home and School Council and joined with other parents (see "All Together" below) to convince the school board to reject the Coke contract. Pat believes it was important for her son to see 1.) her high level of involvement in a cause she felt strongly about, 2.) that the cause was to benefit his health, and 3.) that her group's efforts resulted in success.
Roslyn McQueen
The Home and School Council brought Roslyn together with Pat. Roslyn believes that children can learn to make healthy choices when they are young and "teachable". The thought of the district having a contract with a soft drink company convinced her that it was time to rally community support for healthy practices in school, to match the practices she enforced in her home. Her son has health problems that she helps him to address by following a healthy diet at home and in school. She therefore made time in her busy schedule to attend Council meetings, and eventually, the school board meetings about the contract.
Jill Saull
Jill learned about the Coca-Cola contract proposal by way of a notice she received from The Center for Commercial Free Public Education (CCFPE). She found Pat Albright, they joined forces with Roslyn and other concerned parents, and a campaign was born. Eventually, Jill's involvement took an additional turn when she was invited to join the city's school nutrition Task Force. She was the only member of the group who was invited to act as a representative for parents. The Task Force wrote a nutrition policy that was eventually approved by the board. It was also responsible for initiating environmental changes to promote good nutrition in the schools.
All Together
Pat, Roslyn, Jill, and other parents followed a suggestion by the CCFPE: testify before the school board against the soft drink contract. Support was rallied by conducting a campaign consisting of flyers, phone calls, petitions, letter-writing, and visits to Home and School Meetings. A large group of parents then visited the school board to explain why they believed it would be wrong to sign the Coca-Cola contract.
The board rejected the contract. There are suspicions that the decision against the contract was for fiscal reasons (not a high enough revenue for the district) rather than in consideration of students' health. "But," says Jill, "this put the issues on the table. The public saw and understood what was going on. There is more parent participation at school, now, as a result."
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Sandy Traister
To tie an annual school project in with PANA’s “Go For The Greens” event. Students of the 6th grade gifted ACE (Academic Challenge Enrichment) class prepared and promoted a menu for a celebration on March 17th (St. Patrick’s Day). This project provided the ACE students with a way to encourage their classmates to eat more greens.
Contact Person: Sandy Traister
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
Every elementary school student.
According to the students:
“One of the activities the ACE class does each year is to create menus for the elementary schools. We always follow the traditional menu planning of our school. The 6th-grade ACE decided to go with the theme “Go For The Greens” this year. Our menu included chicken salad with a variety of veggies, a garlic breadstick and a juice pop. We had a contest at each of the schools. We got 52 crowns and decorated them. A boy and girl from each grade were judged to be the King and Queen of the green. The contest was to see who wore the most green on March 17. We, as ACE students, got to judge the contestants. All participants who ate a school lunch received a small prize (a green friendship bracelet) for ‘going for the green’.”
There was fantastic participation by all the students. The students showed great creativity with their costumes. The cafeteria staff created a “river of greens” with many varieties of green vegetables that the students could serve themselves.
"Not much, I think the students did a great job." — Food Service Director
Plan, plan, plan. Try to envision difficulties and have responses for them. The participation for this event was so strong that it created some problems of its own. For example, the administration had difficulty agreeing on the “rules” (i.e. could hair be dyed green?) and the student-judges had great difficulty awarding so few winners due to the tremendous response.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Karen Carlson
Provide healthy beverages at affordable prices via convenient school vending machine.
Contact Person: Karen Carlson
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
High School Students.
Honesdale High School, in Wayne County, Pa, received a free milk vending machine from Crowley Foods in Binghamton, NY in September 2005. The 1060 students are enjoying the products, which are available right outside the cafeteria throughout the school day and after school. Different varieties of 1% milk; white, strawberry, vanilla, chocolate, and cappuccino, plus cider and orange juice, are consumed by students and staff alike. Decker's Dairy and the food service staff stock the machine on a daily basis. The price is kept low at $1.00- $1.25 per pint of product, and profits are added to the food service ala carte account.
The Family and Consumer Science class "Food and Fitness" taught by Deb Nurenberger, evaluated the products available in the milk vending machine. Nutrition labels were evaluated for added sugar and calories. Even though carbohydrate (60 grams) and calorie (400 kcal) counts are high, it was concluded that milk offers important nutrients to teenagers such as vitamins A and D, protein, and calcium.
Milk offers important nutrients to teenagers, such as vitamins A and D, protein and calcium, even though the carbohydrates (60 grams) and calorie (400 kcal) counts are high.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Barbara Farley
Contact Person: Barbara Farley
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
Elementary and Middle School Students.
Students did lessons on Five A Day, Milk Matters, Pyramid Pizza and the Food Guide Pyramid.
The idea was developed through discussion at a Wellness Council Meeting. The Wellness Council was trying to create ways to spread the word on wellness. The ideas evolved through foodservice and teachers discussing different ideas.
The seventh and eighth grade students were given a basic nutrition education lesson plan. They were then given the challenge of researching the topic and adding to the lesson plan. The students then went into the Kindergarten through 3rd grade classrooms and presented a nutrition education lesson to the younger students.
The cross instruction was a huge success. The younger students talked about it for days. They loved having their peers teaching the lessons. The older students enjoyed planning and preparing for the lessons. They really came up with creative ideas and enjoyed this class project. The teachers graded the students on prep, planning, and presentation of the event. This activity also received a lot of good community PR. The local news media covered the event.
Work with the students ahead of time. Make sure they are creating lessons that are accurate and interactive. This is a really fun way to cover Nutrition Education and interact with the students.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Frank Barba
Contact Person: Frank Barba
Contact Person’s Title: Transportation and Food Service Coordinator
School Nutrition Activity Report
Crawford County currently offers breakfast in 5 out of their 8 buildings. After Project PA's May 2004 teleconference detailing strategies to increase meal participation, attention has been focused on trying to serve breakfast in all 8 buildings. A new program was started in one elementary school. Another of the elementary buildings already had a breakfast program, but institution of a Grab and Go system at that school has notably increased participation. Students at the middle school had been offered breakfast at the attached high school's cafeteria, but the walk was long and few middle school students were participating. Therefore a separate breakfast program was begun for the middle school.
Elementary and Middle School Students.
East End Elementary School
Many students were arriving too late to eat breakfast in the cafeteria. After learning about Grab and Go at a principals meeting, the East End principal wanted to give that format a try. Details were worked out with the principal and food service director. A Grab and Go breakfast program was added to the school's already existing breakfast program in February.
Meadville Middle School
After a number of meetings with the principal to decide on the location of the serving line within the commons area, and after meetings with technology personnel to determine how communications with the mainframe could be established, the breakfast program at Meadville Middle School was successfully moved from the high school cafeteria to the commons area in the middle school. This made breakfast more convenient for the middle school students. Due to time constraints (a high percentage of students are bussed) and the distance involved (travel time to cafeteria), middle school students were not participating in the breakfast program. During the first week of breakfast in the middle school commons area, the number of breakfasts served started at 24 on the first day and increased to 63.
First District Elementary School
A brand new breakfast program was started at First District Elementary School. This principal had already worked in a building with a breakfast program, was intrigued by the Grab and Go concept, and was willing to give it a try. The first day, 120 breakfasts were served, indicating the great need for a breakfast program at this school.
In the beginning of the 2001–2002 school years Mr. Hume and Joyce decided on a schedule for the entire year. Each week an invitation was sent to a homeroom teacher inviting the class and teacher to have breakfast with the middle school principal after homeroom. The school newspaper ran a story promoting the program as well as the local newspapers, which published articles about the program and the importance of breakfast in the school system.
Go for it. Parents, students, and teachers have all commented on the improvement in the attitude of students. Test scores are expected to go up and disciplinary problems are expected to go down as participation levels improve.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Kristin A. Melnick
Contact Person: Kristin A. Melnick
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
The event was used to "kickoff" the new Coordinated School Health Council. It introduced the group and raised awareness of their mission and it also provided students with a memorable and educational way to learn about the council.
All 6th graders at the middle school.
The middle school cafeteria was set up like an actual food show. Vendors provided displays and food samples were given to all participants. Students were instructed to share the bags with their families and discuss the foods. Many discussed foods in the classroom with teachers afterwards.
In the beginning of the 2001–2002 school years Mr. Hume and Joyce decided on a schedule for the entire year. Each week an invitation was sent to a homeroom teacher inviting the class and teacher to have breakfast with the middle school principal after homeroom. The school newspaper ran a story promoting the program as well as the local newspapers, which published articles about the program and the importance of breakfast in the school system.
The students, teachers, and staff all gave very positive feedback about the event. Free samples really grabbed the kids' attention while also serving as an educational tool. Afterwards, the students were given a list of five questions and asked to answer these questions in two paragraphs. The top ten submissions were chosen and prizes were awarded. The top five student food choices were placed on the menu and all bagged snacks were converted to Lay's "Baked Line."
Offer the event to the entire middle school instead of just the 6th grade class. Designate a whole day for the event, complete with exercise and other activities.
Start planning early Vendors are willing to help and are a great tool to use: don't be afraid to ask for samples, products, etc.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Barbara Farley
Contact Person: Barb Farley
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
The Food Service Department applied for and received a Fresh Fruit and Vegetable grant. They decided on the Fair as a good way to promote fresh fruits and vegetables.
All students in the school, kindergarten through 6th grade.
Planning the Event
Food service directors Barbara Farley and Vicky Stahr developed a plan and met with the school's principal to plan the event. They contacted presenters and provided them with brief guidelines for the message they wanted to send to the students. Barb and Vicky then met with all of the presenters and discussed each booth. The day before the event the gym was decorated and all of the booths were set up.
Booth 1
Sponsored by the Department of Health, Jeanette Stephanick spoke with the students about being Heart Healthy. She discussed the importance of drinking water and exercising daily. She also showed the students a sample of what five pounds of fat looks like. She briefly discussed the Food Guide Pyramid and stressed the fruits and vegetables in particular. Each student received a bottle of water, a bag of grapes, and handouts on living a healthy lifestyle.
Booth 2
Georgia Farrow, from Penn State Cooperative Extension, provided students with a recipe for stir-fry. She showed the students a variety of fresh vegetables and discussed their nutritional contents. All students were provided with samples of the stir-fry.
Booth 3
Nutrition, Inc. regional chefs Kevin Rindock and Lyle Kerrick displayed a variety of fresh fruits. They introduced the students so some uncommon fruits and vegetables such as pomegranates, artichokes, and blood oranges. The students were given samples of all of the fruits. Kevin and Lyle also spoke with the children about the nutritional value of different fruits and vegetables and talked with the students about the importance of eating five a day.
Booth 4
Nutrition, Inc. regional dietitian, Patty Baresse, and Mary Ellen Oswald, from McDonald's, talked to the students about healthier choices that are offered at this fast food restaurant. They explained to the students that they can order a side salad or apple dippers in place of fries, and milk, juice, or water instead of soda. They also talked about the salad choices and grilled chicken as opposed to breaded chicken or burgers. Ronald McDonald visited with the students and all the students were provided with dippers as a treat.
Ventriloquist Susan Klein provided students in grades K through 3 with a puppet show in the library. The topic was healthy snacking and eating a healthy breakfast and lunch each day.
Nutrition Inc. foodservice directors, Barbara Farley and Vicky Stahr, and others, provided assistance at all the booths and talked with students, teachers, and staff about healthy snacking and promoting good eating habits to the students in the classrooms as well as in the cafeteria.
At the elementary schools, the Grab and Go breakfast was promoted in notes sent home to all students one week before the program began. At the middle school, announcements were made informing the students of the change in breakfast location for a few weeks prior to the change.
The outcome was terrific! The kids had many questions about fruits and vegetables and they are now eating fresh fruits and vegetables at lunch and as a daily snack. The amount of fruits and vegetables the students are taking with lunch has doubled since last year.
Each booth had a group of students for 15 minutes at a time, but 10 minutes may have worked better. The gym was very loud, so setting the booths up in classrooms could help reduce the noise.
Have fun with this. The students loved the entire day and they received valuable information.
An On-line Activity Report Submitted by Kirk McIntosh
Contact Person: Kirk McIntosh
Contact Person’s Title: Food Service Director
School Nutrition Activity Report
Kirk McIntosh wanted to increase breakfast participation, especially among the students eligible for free and reduced price meals. There were two obstacles to overcome:
7th through 12th grade students in one high school building.
A Grab-N-Go Breakfast station has been installed where students get off of the buses to enter the building. Three to five different entrees are offered each morning.
Two more hours of labor at $9.73/hour.
The Grab-N-Go Breakfast was promoted through the school newsletter and during announcements from the office.
After one month of operation, when a 38% participation rate was achieved, the initial goal of increasing participation to 30% was exceeded. The average number of breakfasts served each day had jumped from 143 to 221.
Each booth had a group of students for 15 minutes at a time, but 10 minutes may have worked better. The gym was very loud, so setting the booths up in classrooms could help reduce the noise.
Try this. If you can get the support from the district, it will be worth it to the students as well as the district.