Learning Has Never Been So Delicious and Fun!

     I am fortunate to have the dual job of being a volunteer and a classroom teacher.  Being on the front lines educating children in science can be a daunting task, but using innovative approaches like those offered by Recipe For Success makes the job so much more engaging and fun.   Having the support of RFS Team Leader, Chef Nicole Livezey is an added bonus.  Chef Nicole teaches our students the value of good nutrition and healthy eating, while at the same time reinforcing important science objectives found in the kitchen and garden.  Students learn without even realizing it, because food growing and preparation offers an abundance of resources to teach science. 

The garden is my favorite.  Spending time in the garden weeding, planting and harvesting offers so many opportunities for learning the importance of our earth's materials like soil and plants.  My PreK students have become expert weeders.  They learn to identify different plants and weeds.  We make a game of finding and pulling weeds by the roots.  One class of 4 year-olds was very diligent in getting to the roots, holding them up and shouting "las raíces, las raíces."  Kindergarten and 1st graders learn to sort and classify types of seeds for planting, while older students do the more difficult jobs of turning soil and preparing for planting. And of course everyone enjoys the harvesting.
 
Because our school is in an economically disadvantaged area, some of our students aren't normally exposed to such a variety of fresh vegetables.  Chef Nicole introduces them to many new vegetables they have never even seen, much less tasted.  All students are able to sample the bounty of our garden and they thoroughly enjoy it. Though the new tastes aren't always to their liking, they are willing to try everything.  Often they end up enjoying foods they did not like at first or didn't expect to like.

With the help of Recipe For Success and Chef Nicole, learning has never been so delicious and fun!!