2010 Healthy Eating Club Report
The Lambton-Kent Agriculture in the Classroom (LKAITC) committee's role is to bring awareness of the value of agriculture and food into our classrooms across Chatham-Kent and Sarnia-Lambton.
One of the projects this group has initiated is the Healthy Eating Club. The project was launched in four area schools this past October and ran until early December. The four sites chosen for this project included: Tecumseh Public School and King George Public School in Chatham; Lansdowne Public School in Sarnia; and Kinnwood Public School in Forest. This initiative has grown from last year's pilot project between Ag in the Classroom and the Ontario Agri-Food Education (OAFE).
These clubs targeted students in grades 6, 7, and 8 and had a direct connection to the health curriculum of those grades. The goals of the clubs was to promote healthy eating while allowing students to try new things, to learn where their food comes from, and to understand the importance that agriculture plays in their daily lives.
Each of the clubs met twice a week for a period of 8 weeks which totalled 16 forty-minute classes. Each week focused on a specific food group and topic. One class per week had a producer/commodity/volunteer group delivering a positive message around the healthy eating of Ontario farm-grown products. The other weekly class involved hands-on food preparation and sampling from the products they learned about earlier that week. Each child received a recyclable bag which contained a variety of materials about agriculture and health. These items became a personalized take-home resource for each member of the club.
The success of the project was evident from this small sampling of comments after the conclusion of the club.
"My daughter cooks all the time at home now, it's so great. And her little brothers are reaping the benefits of her cooking." (Parent of a participating student)
"Could we have the program back in our school? I have students in younger grades that can't wait until they are old enough to join the Healthy Eating Club!" (Principal of a participating school)
"It is great to have a program that gives students life skills that have been removed from the curriculum."
(Helper at a participating school)
"I think the program is a really good thing because a lot of kids think that their food comes from the grocery store. 'Farm to the fridge' knowledge is something that many students lack. (Producer who presented at one of the sessions)
LKAITC worked together this year with associated project partners including: Lambton Kent District School Board, Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit, County of Lambton Community Health Services, local producers and commodity groups, and volunteer organizations. Funding for the project this year was graciously provided by the Chatham Kent Community Foundation (for the Chatham Schools) and the Sarnia Community Foundation (for the Lambton Schools).
Click Here to See a Link to the 'HEALTHY EATING CLUB'S LEADER'S MANUAL'
