Natural Kitchen Strategies works on a consultancy basis with schools to implement the Natural Kitchen Strategies principles into their canteens. Jacqi meets with Principals, School Council representatives, parent associations and canteen managers to give invaluable advice on all aspects of developing healthy school canteen menus.
The Federal Government has established a $15 million grant program to help schools, families and children learn more about healthy eating practices. This funding now allows for some real health promotion activities in schools to help tackle problems such as childhood obesity.
There are many and varied opportunities to develop an awareness in children of the correlation between what they eat and how they function, mentally, physically and emotionally. Schools are the perfect environment to help encourage and nurture in children a keen interest in good food.
To understand and appreciate good food now and for the rest of their lives, children need to be exposed to real food as much as possible. That is, food that is fresh, delicious and as simple as possible. In many homes where this does not happen, or happens very little, it is even more vital to provide children with these opportunities in the school environment: that is, the canteen. In order for children to become adults who make wise choices about their environment and the food they eat, they need to be given every chance for healthy and positive eating experiences.
Practical learning experiences via the canteen can also walk hand in hand with nutrition education in the classroom. Children like integrity. If they are being taught by their teachers that it is important to eat well and are then offered 'junk' food from the school canteen they will see straight through the hypocrisy,
for hypocrisy it is. Developing an understanding of the role of real food in our lives can be fun and stimulating. A whole school approach to good food and nutrition education can make a real difference to the long-term 'real life' education of our children.
Click here to view our advertisement on how we help School's Government Funded Health Promotion activities.
NKS ~ schools ~ SCHOOL HEALTH
There are many and varied opportunities
To understand and appreciate good food now and for the rest of their lives, children need to be exposed to real food as much as possible. That is, food that is fresh, delicious and as simple as possible. In many homes where this does not happen, or happens very little, it is even more vital to provide children with these opportunities in the school environment: that is, the canteen. In order for children to become adults who make wise choices about their environment and the food they eat, they need to be given every chance for healthy and positive eating experiences.
Practical learning experiences via the canteen can also walk hand in hand with nutrition education in the classroom. Children like integrity. If they are being taught by their teachers that it is important to eat well and are then offered 'junk' food from the school canteen they will see straight through the hypocrisy,
for hypocrisy it is. Developing an understanding of the role of real food in our lives can be fun and stimulating. A whole school approach to good food and nutrition education can make a real difference to the long-term 'real life' education of our children.
