Strawberries, bananas, kiwifruit, apples and grapes filled
the playground, the classrooms and even the reception and staffroom of Richmond
School celebrated 5+ A Day Fruit and Vegetable Month last Thursday.
The school’s junior classroom organised and hosted a Shared
Lunch and Dress Up Parade to promote 5+ a day healthy eating. As part of a
nationwide competition organised by the 5+ A Day Charitable Trust, the students planned the
event as a way to promote healthy eating habits and options at school and at home.
Even before ‘healthy lunches’ hit the mainstream news recently, these
students were learning about food groups and surveying their community about
their fruit and vegetable eating habits. In response to their research, these 6
and 7 year olds decided the community just needed to ‘taste test’ a wider
variety of fruit and vegetables, hence the Shared Lunch. Thanks to the school’s
participation in the ‘fruit in schools’ and KidsCan programmes, as well as
generous donations from local businesses The Green Grocers and Grove-Lea
orchard, fruit smoothies, fruit skewers and 5 + vegetable soup were on offer
for all to try.
Despite it being early in the season, strawberries were the overall
favourite in the Dress Up Parade with students (and teachers) of all ages
sporting creative and colourful costumes. Another piece of costume innovation
was a cardboard vending machine that stocked only fruit.
Overall the day was a success with parents, whanau and community members
coming together to share in the students’ learning and ‘taste test’ their
creations.
