What does it mean to be a Healthier US Challenge Bronze School?

A big congratulations to the following Somerville Public Schools, who are recipients of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Healthier US School Challenge (HUSSC) Bronze Award:

· Dr. Albert F. Argenziano School

· East Somerville Community School

· Arthur D. Healey School

· John F. Kennedy Elementary School

· West Somerville Neighborhood School

· Winter Hill Community Innovation School

What does it mean to be a HUSSC Bronze School? Well, besides being among an elite group of schools, only approximately 7% of schools throughout the United States are certified as HUSSC schools, this means that these Somerville schools have been working day in and day out to go above and beyond the standards set forth for nutrition and physical activity.

The school kitchens are cooking up whole grains and fresh fruit and vegetables, and serving all of these in a tasty and visually appealing manner. And we’re not repeating the same choices over and over again either. We’re working hard to keep the menu fresh and interesting; for example, by offering a different fruit every day and serving a variety of veggies, dark green, red/orange, legume, starchy, etc., over the course of the week. Other competitive foods or extra foods are not sold or served to students so junk food is out of the school. We are also making sure that the students are getting structured nutrition education. We want them to learn about healthy choices in the classrooms, experience it in the cafeteria, and then take this knowledge home to family and friends.

On top of the healthy food choices available to students, we’re making sure these kids are moving! They are participating in gym class, moving at recess and getting as many opportunities as possible throughout the day to get structured physical activity.

The purpose of all these efforts is to support the “whole child” and to develop the intellectual, physical, social and emotional potential of all students. This is a goal of the Somerville School Committee and is reflected in the District Wellness Policy. The HUSSC award represents the dedication to the students of Somerville that happens at all district schools on a daily basis.

Congratulations again to all the schools!! Keep up the good work!!

Content provided by Charlotte Stephenson, Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program Coordinator

Comments

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!

Farm to School Month Kickoff - Corn Shucking Day 2015

It's October and that means Farm to School Month! We have a busy month of real food activities planned from Salad Bar Day coming up on Thursday, October 8 to School Garden week. We kicked off our celebration with our annual Corn Shucking event. Three thousand ears of corn were shucked during an intense 30 minute time frame. Corn was sourced through our produce vendor, Russo's and grown at Taveres Farm in South Dartmouth, MA. With hands and husks flying, students, staff, community partners and parents all helped to get the job done quickly. At the Capuano Early Childhood Center, our youngest students took their jobs very seriously. Some peeling on piece at a time. Over at the Brown School, the chilly weather didn't deter the volunteers and students from shucking outside. Even our leaders, Superintendent Mary Skipper and Assistant Superintendent Vince McKay lent a hand at the East Somerville Community School. At each school,

Thousands of Somerville youth try local sweet potatoes! And the verdict is...

Samples of the local sweet potato and black bean salad! This month, thousands of elementary students throughout the district explored sweet potatoes through taste-tests offered during their lunch periods by the Somerville Farm to School Program and Drumlin Farm. Working in partnership with Drumlin Farm, who runs afterschool programming and supplements produce for our salad bars during the growing season, the November taste-tests are part of the district’s food literacy campaign to increase the acceptance of new, fresh foods and create new recipes for the lunch menu using local ingredients. We are thankful for the many parent volunteers who helped hand out samples and collect data. So what did the data say? Of the 2,000 students who voted after trying the delicious sweet potato and black bean salad, 61% said they would eat it again. Because so many students at least tried it, we call that a win! To those who said it wasn't their favorite, we urged them to explain what

Somerville Farm to School Project

Search This Blog