What would you think about teaching children to learn how to grow fresh fruits and vegetables and how to cook at school? That’s the sort of thing that was brought up in an article done in The Atlantic and then again on Serious Eats with two vastly different opinions.
The idea of both articles come from the well known Alice Waters and The Edible Schoolyard, a one-acre garden and kitchen classroom at Martin Luther King, Jr Middle School in Berkeley, California.
The class seems to be integrated into the school curriculum as another extra curricular activity, such as music, art, or gym. The program not only teaches kids how food grows and how to prepare healthy meals, but how to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly when it comes to food.
The controversy however is that some believe that the schools that participate in this type of program seem to be loosing focus on standard education such as math, reading, and writing. Also that perhaps these programs are also forcing too much hard work on children (6th and 7th graders are the ones in The Edible Schoolyard).
The question is that if this sort of program can be used in schools to help with writing recipes, measuring food (weight, volume, fractions), learn the historical significance of food and where it comes from, is it worth changing some of the standard curriculum to embrace this topic in class?
The idea of teaching children in this fashion, as long as the standard doesn’t get lost, feels like a great one. As an extra curricular activity, it’s another way for children to be creative as in art or learn the science of how a plant grows. Also if we can help to make math, writing, and reading more interesting why not do it?
Too many kids out there don’t want to do it because it’s “boring”, but once they get a hold of a way that makes it fun, they won’t just memorize because they have to, but learn because they want to.
Photo by Weaselmcfee.
11. February 2010 at 12:57 pm
I agree completly. More kids should know thqt veggies and meat does NOT grow in super markets but in back yards and farms.
11. February 2010 at 2:00 pm
I agree also, too many kids don’t realize that unfortunately. This program seems to be very promising.
12. November 2010 at 1:41 pm
i would like to replace our bathroom lighting with light emitting diodes to save electricity ~.:
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