September is food literacy month

Did you know that September is food literacy month? This month long holiday might have started in California but there are plenty of events right here in Somerville for you to celebrate locally!

Are you curious about where your food comes from? Have you ever visited a farm and met a farmer? Do you cook food at home? Are you interested in making more informed decisions about food? Then this holiday is for you.

Here's a list of ideas to celebrate FOOD LITERACY MONTH!

~Read a book about food: "It's Not About the Broccoli: Three Habits to Teach Your Kids for a Lifetime of Healthy Eating"

Image via Amazon.com

~Visit a local orchard to pick your own seasonal fruits!

~Every Saturday from 9am to 1pm, you can visit the Union Square Farmers' Market.

~Every Thursday and Saturday you can visit Shape Up Somerville's Mobile Farmers' Market. Thursday markets are held at the Council on Aging at the TAB Building (167 Holland St) 1-3pm and North Street Housing (at North St and Powderhouse Blvd) 4-7pm. On Saturdays the market will be at the Mystic Housing development (530 Mystic Ave) 1-4pm.

~Eat tomatoes! The Somerville Public Schools Food and Nutrition Services and Massachusetts Farm to School celebrate tomatoes as the vegetable of the month.

~September 12-28 - Visit the Big E for some local shellfish.

~September 16 - Support our partner Groundwork Somerville at a fundraiser at Flatbread in Davis Square.

~September 27 - Join Groundwork Somerville on a bike tour of Somerville's Farms and Gardens!

~September 27 - Attend the Let's Talk About Food Festival in Copley Square, Boston. Discuss local vs organic. Learn some new recipes for fresh, healthy, family meals. Learn how to grow vegetables in your backyard. And much, much more!

Content provided by Karyn Novakowski, Somerville Farm to School Project Director.

Comments

Mindful Eating: Part 1

In order to digest your food properly, your body must be in parasympathetic mode, or in a state of non-stress. Kindergartners know this. Well, they might not know the scientific term yet, but during lunch they participate in 6 minutes of silence; a period they call "Mindful Eating". When asked why they like mindful eating, the children replied, because "it’s quiet”, “I can enjoy my food better”, “I get peace and quiet”, and "it’s calmly”. Kindergartener teacher Ms. Scrima, and other Kennedy School teachers have been implementing mindfulness in the cafeteria and their classrooms since last year. They are proud to have a lunch period that looks and sounds quite different from the chaotic cafeteria rush other classes often experience. While the students sit silently at the lunch table checking in with their emotions, their digestive systems are also benefitting. Physiologically, only when our bodies are in rest mode can the brain trigger the release of digestive

Put your best FORK forward during National Nutrition Month

March is National Nutrition Month! Each year the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics develops new topics to celebrate National Nutrition Month. This year's theme, Put your best fork forward, encourages us to consider that every bite counts. Even "small shifts in our food choices, can add up over time." Here in Somerville we are celebrating National Nutrition Month in a few ways. ~ We are releasing Veggie of the Month kits in each school's library! The kits contain books, taste testing supplies, and a binder with lesson materials for each month! ~ We are visiting a few PreK-2nd grade classes to "taste-test" the veggie of the month: leafy greens! In the classroom, we are reading Sylvia's Spinach and making a simple salad dressing to drizzle over spinach! (Be sure to check back later for the results of our visits!) ~ Our Wellness Champions and Farm to School Staff are posting bulletin boards and fliers around the schools!

How do we get kids to eat their leafy greens? Try these 2 recipes...

For this year's National Nutrition Month, we are "Going Further with Food!" It's an assumption that getting our kids to eat their leafy greens is always a colossal battle. It's true--salads aren't easy to convince a kid to try when they're staring at something that resembles rabbit food. But by assuming they won't try it means you've already given up, and that's not what we're about here at the Somerville Farm to School Project! So how do we make salads desirable? For one, we can provide a space for children to grow their own food, to learn the parts of a plant, and to nurture something from seed to harvest. We've learned that, "if they grow it, they'll eat it". It's empowering to be hands-on with food! Even if you don't have outdoor garden space, leafy greens are easy to grow indoors or in small pots as long as you have a sunny window or space. Secondly, you can involve kids in the kitchen by making fun salad

Somerville Farm to School Project

Search This Blog