Kids Around the Table
CV program introduces elementary students to healthy eating habits.
BY PAUL GLASSER
A
program designed to develop students’ palates, teach table etiquette and develop social skills at Chartiers Valley Intermediate School could expand in the future.
“ The fact that students are coming back for a second, and possibly third, time tells me that we are making a difference,” says intermediate school principal Patrick Myers.
The program is called Kids Around the Table and more than 100 students between grades 3 and 5 have participated since it began earlier this year. The purpose is to introduce students to a variety of new healthy foods, educate them about serving sizes and food safety, and teach them table manners. About 25 students participate in each two-week session and food is served in a family-style setting. Students are charged according to regular lunch price or are eligible for free or reduced rates.
The menu includes farm-fresh foods and other healthy items, such as a kale Caesar salad with croutons. The Nutrition Group provides food services at the school, and one of the firm’ s chefs designed the menu and explained each meal to the students. Sarah Zrimsek, regional assistant for The Nutrition Group, says“ volcanic” meatloaf and homemade mashed potatoes were the most popular items,“ but the barbeque chicken tends to be the all-time favorite.”
Some of the popular foods might be added to the regular lunch menu in the future.
Kara Droney, communications director for the school district, attended a meal with 4th grade students and encouraged one boy to try the salad, which he had been reluctant to eat.
“ We both took our first bite and a smile spread across his face,” Droney says.“ The next thing I know, he was serving himself a little more and then a little more.”
The Kids Around the Table program has been so popular that Droney hopes the program will be expanded next year.
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