Home > Curriculum Center > Archives > Science > Curriculum Article

Cantaloupe Instead of Cupcakes? Believe It!

"Nutrition can't be a unit; it has to be ongoing." Those are the words of Sabina M. Mosso, who teaches preschoolers and kindergartners at Anna Boyd Child Development Center in Columbia, South Carolina. Recognized by the Dole Food Company for her efforts to improve student nutrition, both in her school, and in other state school districts, Mosso knew she had won a huge victory when one of her students showed up on his birthday with a fruit tray instead of cupcakes! Included: Mosso's tips for improving student nutrition in your school and online nutrition resources too!

A simple homework assignment started it all. Sabina M. Mosso teaches kindergartners and preschoolers in special education and regular classes at the Anna Boyd Child Development Center in Columbia, South Carolina. Several years ago, a nutrition professor in Mosso's graduate program assigned her to go back to her classroom and make a change -- improve student nutrition. That wouldn't be an easy task by any standards. "These kids were bringing a bunch of garbage to school," she recalled.

Sabina Mosso (center), classroom assistant Carolyn Wilson, and students snack on vegetables at a party honoring Mosso.

Mosso and other staff members offered evening parent workshops about nutrition so efforts would not end in the classroom.

That homework assignment led to additional changes in other classrooms. Teachers wanted to know how Mosso had been able to get young students to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day, so she trained colleagues from 17 other school districts at in-service workshops. In addition to leading workshops, Mosso shared her strategies at other educational seminars.

Would you like to improve the nutritional quality of your students' diets? Sabina Mosso has some tips for you! Read Tips for Improving Student Nutrition in the sidebar to this story.

5 A DAY TEACHER OF THE YEAR!

The Dole Food Company, sponsors of Dole Food Company's Nutrition Program, named Mosso its 1999 Creative 5 A Day Teacher of the Year.

Mosso accepts Dole's 1999 Creative 5 A Day Teacher of the Year award in front of a produce display set up for the event.

Helping kids choose a more healthful lifestyle is a tough assignment. According to a 1996 report, "What We Eat In America," by the United States Department of Agriculture, only 26 percent of all children eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables per day. The same report states that about half of the nation's children do not eat even one serving of fruit daily. French fries and potato chips make up a third of the vegetables kids eat. Other studies have found that more than 84 percent of children and adolescents eat too much total fat, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

After Mosso established the healthful snack policy, she gave a sticker to each student who brought a healthful snack to school. Some students had trouble complying with the policy. One student was so dismayed that she hadn't yet received a sticker, she begged for one. Mosso told the student "If you go home and bring in a [healthful] snack, I'll give you a sticker." The student's response helped prompt the parent education workshops: "You have to talk to my mommy. My mommy doesn't know what a [healthful] snack is."

PARENT WORKSHOPS TOO!

Mosso and the school staff conducted four workshops throughout the school year. The workshops explained the policy regarding healthful snacks and suggested ways to interest children in making the leap into the produce aisle. Mosso suggested that parents include their children in the selection process: Take them to the grocery store and let them pick out the fruits and vegetables they like.

Another parent workshop included students and taught them and their parents simple ways of preparing healthful meals. "We have a real close relationship with our parents on a daily basis, either verbally or written," Mosso said. "That rapport is the real reason for our success."

The parents loved the new policy, Mosso recalled. They told her that their children were asking for more fruits and vegetables at home. Even parents had become more aware of what they ate and added more fruits and vegetables to their diets. She tells people "Nutrition can't be a unit; it has to be ongoing. ... It's a life skill and it has to be integrated on a continual basis."

Students check out bags of goodies provided by Dole.

Mosso points to lifestyle changes as part of the proof a change is being made. "The ultimate proof was when a student brought in a birthday fruit tray instead of the traditional birthday cake," she said.

Although receiving a national award honored her, Mosso hasn't sat on her laurels. She has added another component for more healthful living. Mosso's lesson plans now include aerobic exercise each day. Parents and her students' siblings even get to join in on the fun at a local gym one evening per month for no charge as Mosso leads them in an aerobic exercise class!

NATIONAL PROGRAM
PROMOTES FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

Dole's Classroom Resources include a wide variety of free materials that teachers can download or order, including

• 5 A Day Adventures CD-ROM, the centerpiece of the Dole Nutrition Program. Fruit and vegetable characters talk and sing on this interactive computer software programthat includes eight interactive modules.
• charts with reusable stickers to help students keep track of the number of fruits and vegetables they eat each day.
• Fun With Fruits and Vegetables Kids Cookbook with simple fruit and vegetable recipes kids can make.
• Jammin' 5 A Day Songs cassette tape.
• 5 A Day Live performance kit with songs, sheet music, and the text of a play based on a evening news broadcast.

Since 1991, Dole has spent approximately $20 million to promote better nutrition for children, according to Lorelei DiSogra, director of nutrition and health at Dole. About 60 percent of all elementary schools in the United States use the CD-ROM, she said. Nutrition education is a serious issue, noted DiSogra. "Children are eating only half of the recommended five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day,"

The goal of the program is to help students and their families make lasting changes. "This is when eating habits develop and if children learn [healthful] habits, they will carry those [healthful] habits into adulthood," DiSogra explained.

The Dole program promotes the goals of the National Cancer Institute and the Produce for Better Health Foundation. "I think [Dole] has done a phenomenal job," said Gloria Stables, program director of 5 A Day for Better Health at the National Cancer Institute. "They have taken it on as a major effort. It's a nice, stand-alone program that fits in very nicely with the partnership."

ADDITIONAL NUTRITION RESOURCES ONLINE

The FDA KIDS' Home Page
Find health information geared for children on this interactive site. There's a section for parents too.

CDC's Nutrition And Physical Activity Page
This site offers information about improving child and adolescent health through physical activity and nutrition.

Physical Education Central
This site offers health and physical education teachers tips and lesson plan ideas.

Kids' Health
This site from the Nemours Foundation offers health information geared to children and their parents. Contains interactive articles about children's healthcare, medicine, surgery, and parenting. There are fun games, Kids Vote health polls, and the Nemours media guide.

Teen Growth
This interactive site for adolescents was created by a team of pediatricians, educators, and Internet professionals. The site includes information about a variety of issues, including nutrition.

5 A Day For Better Health
The National Cancer Institute offers this site to help you keep track of your daily nutritional progress and exercise.

Article by Gary Hopkins
Education World®
Copyright © 2009 Education World

Originally published 03/01/2002
Last updated 02/24/2009