You're Never Too Old to Play With Your Food

From USDA:

Posted by Jessica Larson, MS, RD (Nutritionist, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion), on December 18, 2014 at 12:00 PM

MyPlate offers easy ideas for making healthy foods festive and fun.

Who doesn’t want to have a little fun with their food? Especially if you have a picky eater at home, try adding a creative flair to the plate to boost a healthy meal’s fun factor. Our team of nutritionists has been having fun using cookie cutters to come up with creative, healthy ideas, but there are lots of easy ways to make healthy choices more appealing.

Earlier this week we shared a blog about making a snowman from all 5 of the MyPlate food groups. Below are some additional ideas. Have fun!

• Try using cookie cutters to make a two-toned sandwich, like the mitten sandwich above. This also helps teach kids about making at least half their grains whole grains.
• Serve foods in seasonal colors. For Valentine’s Day, play up red fruits and vegetables, for St. Patrick’s Day- all green, for the 4^th of July- red, white, and blue.
• Create a “new” dish with your child and name it for him or her. Make a big deal of serving “Dawn’s Spectacular Salad” or “Peter’s ‘Pan-tastic’ Sweet Potatoes” for dinner.
• Use seasonal placemats and napkins to make the meal more festive.
• Create faces on the plate. For example, create a potato person by decorating half a baked potato with sliced cherry tomatoes, peas, and low-fat cheese to make a funny face.
• Use cookie cutters to create fun shapes out of low-fat cheese and whole-grain bread. Pair with fruits and veggies for a MyPlate snack plate. (See image below)

And, importantly, be a healthy role model! Let kids see you enjoying healthy foods and they’ll be excited to try them, too.

Stay connected with MyPlate for healthy food inspiration year round:

• ChooseMyPlate.gov
• MyPlate Facebook page
• @MyPlate Twitter
• Sign up for MyPlate email updates
  

  Try using cookie cutters to add a fun, seasonal theme to healthy choices.

Old Microscope Sparks New Idea for Kids' Science Club

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Stephanie Worley Firley, Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center, U.S. Forest Service, on April 8, 2014 at 3:30 PM

Drs. Rebecca Efroymson and Bill Hargrove held a recent science club meeting in Haw Creek Elementary School’s computer lab. (U.S. Forest Service/Stephanie Worley Firley)

When he was a child, Forest Service scientist Bill Hargrove burnt off his eyebrows making rocket fuel, blew up a sealed jar of cultured yeast and started a bathroom fire while doing sterile transfers for a carrot tissue culture. Fortunately, he survived his early scientific experiments and is now inspiring a new generation of young students.

Hargrove, a research ecologist with the Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center, and his wife, Rebecca Efroymson, are pioneering an extramural science club for fourth and fifth graders at Haw Creek Elementary School in Asheville, N.C. Each monthly club meeting features real-life scientists who lead lively discussions and activities about diverse scientific topics.

During the first club meeting last year, students looked at living creatures found in drops of pond water through a light microscope—Hargrove’s own childhood microscope.

“I used to spend hours in junior high school looking at protozoa through that microscope. My family got used to having stinky jars of pond water on every available window sill,” Hargrove said.

While learning about the microscope, students also looked at toothpaste, sandpaper, salt crystals, and grooves in a phonograph record, an object that was not as familiar to them as Hargrove had hoped. Hargrove projected the images under the microscope onto a large screen so that all of the students could see them at the same time. Students also controlled a scanning electron microscope located in a different state over the Internet to observe many insect specimens that they had mailed weeks earlier to the national Bugscope project.

Science club activities go well beyond examining the microscopic world. During past meetings, students constructed simple robots that could move and follow a light source; explored rockets, airplanes and space, including outdoor rocket and airplane demos; and delved into electronics. Students have also surveyed archaeology, constructed pickle and lemon batteries, learned about biofuels and solar power, and have even touched human brains as part of a recent meeting focused on psychology, following a discussion about respectful conduct and ethics.

One might wonder why Hargrove and Efroymson — both busy researchers and the parents of two — commit their extremely limited spare time to the club. In short, they wish to share their passion for science with others. They hope to excite students about the possibilities of careers in science, especially those who are underrepresented in scientific fields, including women and minorities.

Hargrove, an entomologist by training and once a young shortwave and amateur radio enthusiast, explains that kids today belong to a ‘software generation’ and feels that free range tinkering with hardware and electronics is critically important for developing minds.

“I think that kids often don’t get any ‘feel’ for science,” he said. “But if they can experiment in a safe environment, they realize that science is just normal, regular stuff. No magic at all. Then the fear is gone, de-mystified, and they can get on with learning.”

Partnering with Cooperative Extension to Support Farm to School

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USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Matthew Benson, Program Analyst, USDA, FNS, Farm to School Program, on September 5, 2013 at 11:35 AM

Adam McCurry, Agricultural Technician for North Carolina Cooperative Extension in Yancey County conducts a lesson about local apple varieties before taking students outside to plant an apple tree at Bald Creek Elementary School in Burnsville, North Carolina. (Photo courtesy of Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, Asheville, North Carolina)

Kids are headed back to school and so are county Extension agents.

As schools continue to teach kids where their food comes from and bring local and regional products into the school cafeteria, one group they may want to partner with on their farm to school activities is their local or regional Cooperative Extension office. Cooperative Extension Systems are administered by each state’s Land-Grant University System. Programs are available in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. and most states have local or regional Extension offices that are staffed by one or more experts, often referred to as Extension agents or Extension educators.

Nationally, more and more Cooperative Extension Systems are devoting key resources to supporting farm to school activities. Of the 68 fiscal year 2013 USDA Farm to School Grants distributed, 25 percent included partners from Cooperative Extension. State Extension Systems such as Ohio, Minnesota, and Illinois have already dedicated resources and personnel to leading their states farm to school programs. And at the upcoming national Extension conference, farm to school and local foods are sure to be a major themes discussed.

Before joining the USDA, I examined how Cooperative Extension professionals are supporting farm to school programs and activities. Through a survey of eight state Extension Systems, results show that on average, Extension professionals are supporting at least one farm to school-related activity and that respondents were interested in supporting farm to school much more than they currently are. The number one farm to school activity that respondents were involved in was school or community gardening programs. Extension professionals were also found to be supporting farm to school initiatives by helping producers market and sell their products to schools, coordinating farm-based field trips and tours for students, and helping host producers at schools for presentations about local foods and agriculture.

Many of the Extension professionals that completed the survey stated that they felt Cooperative Extension should play an increased role in local and regional farm to school programs but that they need additional training and encouragement to get more involved. This finding is one of the reasons why the USDA Farm to School Program is launching a webinar series focused on helping Extension professionals become more knowledgeable about ways they can support farm to school. Through this webinar series, we also hope to show how other farm to school groups can successfully partner with Cooperative Extension. With schools back in session, now is a perfect time to reach out to local or regional Extension offices and ask that they get involved with farm to school.

Editors Note: To learn more about upcoming webinars, sign-up for the Farm to School E-letter.

The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge! Summer Fun that Helps Kids Learn

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Judy Wilson, Director of Nutrition Services, Food and Nutrition Service and Rebecca Gates, Nutrition.gov, on August 28, 2013 at 3:45 PM

This is a screen capture from the Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge online game for kids. The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge teaches moms and children about healthy habits and provides practical ways they can incorporate them.

It’s summer time! And kids’ thoughts naturally turn to ways to have fun and enjoy themselves! Moms, on the other hand, want kids to continue to learn and develop their skills while they enjoy the lazy days of summer.  The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge is an online game that meets the needs of moms and kids. The game inspires kids to jump into good nutrition and have fun while learning. It also helps kids to make good food choices and encourages them to be physically active between events to warm them up for the next challenge and to celebrate!

In this online game from USDA, kids pick their player and progress through four track and field events including the javelin, high jump, long jump, and the dash. To win, players must quickly pick the right answer to questions about healthy eating and nutrition. As players advance from one event to the next, they are encouraged to be active: “Now jump up and down five times to celebrate!” When kids answer correctly, their players get a medal at the end of the game. Questions are randomly selected so kids can play multiple times to get a better score or “go for the gold” on the winner’s stand.

Moms can feel good knowing that this video game reinforces the healthy eating habits they want their kids to develop. The game is also a fun, interactive way for moms and kids to enjoy their time together while learning about whole grains, fruits, vegetables and foods made with low fat milk. The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge also provides practical ways mom and child can apply what they learn. The kids’ activity sheets reinforce the skills kids learn in the game, and are an excellent “quiet time” activity for rainy summer days!

Check out the Especially for Moms resources; this page includes kid-friendly recipes, videos, fact sheets and easy, low-cost ways to make fruits, veggies, low-fat milk and whole grains a part of family meals and snacks.

Nutrition.gov provides easy, online access to government information on food and human nutrition for consumers and is managed by the USDA National Agricultural Library (NAL) Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC). More resources about nutrition, healthy eating and physical activity can be found at www.Nutrition.gov.

This is a screen capture from the Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge online game for kids. The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge teaches moms and children about healthy habits and provides practical ways they can incorporate them.