Abstract
This paper is a brief outline rendering an idea on how to educate children and families of diverse backgrounds in the ways of food, health, and nutrition. Considering some empirical practices that have proven efficacy, the ideology of this approach is presented in a clear, comprehensive, practical way.
Key words: diversity, nutrition, ethnicities, culture, socio-economic background, families, education
In the field of Education, various school districts face the responsibility of meeting the educational needs of children and families who come from a diversified number of backgrounds. In making this acknowledgement, it is important to point out that such backgrounds include multifarious ethnicities, socio-economic backgrounds, and demographics. This is especially true in large, metropolitan cities, but not limited to them. No matter what the case, it is important to educate all children and families, even when there is not much diversity. Understanding the world that we live in means that we understand the diversity of our cities, our states, our nation, and the many countries across the globe. Equally important, if not more, is knowing how to have and maintain a nutritious diet that one can enjoy and easily achieve. Therefore, in this manuscript, the conglomeration of these two ideas is explored by approaching food and nutrition through a lesson in diversity and an exploration of culture.
The Idea
Using a class of fifth-graders who come from a plethora of ethnicities, the teacher wants to organize a pot-luck for lunch on a specified date. She has effectively and successfully received commitments from at least one parent from every household to bring a dish that represents their child’s ethnicity. Each student’s assignment is to research their ethnicity, the dish that their parent is bringing, and to give a presentation about their culture and ethnicity. They are free to creatively share their presentation within the parameter of five minutes. They are encouraged to include the flag of their ethnicity as it relates to the dish and any other prop that will educate the group about their culture and background.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this manuscript is a brief outline of how to conglomerate diversity and nutrition with the simple of idea of an organized pot-luck. In doing so, the students prepare by researching their own culture and dish in order to make a presentation to pot-luck participants (students and parents). This diverse approach is aimed to teach students about the world to include the importance of having and maintaining a nutritious diet.
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