The Edible Schoolyard
We talked about garden-based nutrition education, also known as garden-based learning, or GBL. We made connections between the benefits that kids derive from GBL, and the ways in which children can avoid falling prey to a crippling dependency on hedonic foodstuffs. The Edible Schoolyard is based on the garden-based learning philosophy. It’s in Berkeley, California, […]
Don’t Just Stand There — Grow Something! Part 2
We have been looking at some ideas about kids and gardening, schools, and childhood obesity, and the relationships between them. Many people are upset about school lunches, which sometimes involve such undesirable elements as vending machines, fast-food franchises, and microwaved meals. No one would deny that kids need to eat fresh vegetables and fruit, even […]
George Ball: “Nothing to Lose But Our Waistlines”
Many people realize that childhood obesity is a serious and growing problem, and many even ask, “But what can we do about it?” For parents, a great, big, wonderful answer is: Grow veggies! We’re looking today at a recent opinion piece in the The Wall Street Journal, written by George Ball, who urges us to make […]
Eat for Success, Part 4
We’ve talked before about various possible solutions to the childhood obesity riddle, including the simple ones. Not that a “solution” means that someone will only need to do that one thing, and immediately lose 100 pounds. But simple solutions are good because they give a person a foothold, a starting place. A journey of a […]
Thoughts About Real Kids and Real Food
Liz Snyder is full of ideas for healthier families, and she shares several of them in her fascinating article about kids and food. Snyder has a Master’s degree in nutritional anthropology, and she describes herself as a food activist. Snyder’s special concern is nutrition in schools, and she is also very interested in what the […]