Dec 20, 2007
At Increase Miller Elementary School
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Students create harvest soup
The students at Increase Miller Elementary School turned the first harvest from their new Learning and Growing Garden into a schoolwide cooking, dining and learning experience. Denise Martabano, the health, wellness and sustainability coach in the Katonah-Lewisboro School District, coordinated a three-part experience for the students that focused on nutrition, healthy eating and sustainability, while also providing food for the students.
Members of the school’s Environmental Club helped harvest spinach from the garden that had been planted by students earlier in the season. Once the spinach was gathered, the entire school helped to prepare the soup. Nearly 400 children took turns peeling, chopping or slicing vegetables. The students prepared all of the ingredients for the soup: 16 bunches of spinach, five pounds of mushrooms, 32 carrots, 48 potatoes, 32 onions, 16 cups of corn, 16 celery stalks, 24 cups of squash, 14 pounds of tomatoes, four pounds of pasta, and 128 cups of broth.
Cups of the soup were distributed to all of the students during lunch.
The school is planning to repeat the practice in coming years, as the garden grows.
“Our school’s theme this year is ‘Making a Difference,’” said Assistant Principal Laura Panek. “Our students are learning and experiencing the many ways they can make a difference in their communities. By harvesting and making their own soup, the students experienced how eating locally grown foods not only helps the environment but tastes good, too.”
© Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers
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