Well, it’s officially a done deal. It’s the end of another school year today and several weeks of summertime fun is on the horizon for school-aged children in Delta.
I have spent the past few weeks participating in wrap up parties with hundreds of kids in the school district. They have usually involved some sort of salad dished off the back of my truck followed up with a healthy spray down from the hose.
It is amazing what a little water can do for the kids’ fun meters. Besides learning some of the aspects of farming through understanding seed charts, planting and harvesting, the end result of eating was a big focus this year. I would bring food the young farmers had chosen to plant and we would eat it so that we would know what to expect at harvest time.
Project Pickle kids in Delta ate hundreds of pounds of carrots, peas, cucumbers radishes, spinach, strawberries and other goodies over the course of the year. It was really quite interesting to note some of the finer takeaways from these weekly snack sessions.
Sadly, there are lots of kids who do not eat a variety of vegetables at home. There are children in Delta who have never had lettuce before. There are children who have never had a strawberry or watermelon before. There are children in Delta who do not want to plant a seed or pull a carrot because they are concerned their parents will get mad at them for getting their hands dirty.
These are isolated observations, and the majority of kids seem to be enjoying a regular proper diet, but these realities remind us that kids need to be engaged and creative around food.
I have encouraged them all to ride their bikes or walk to the school farms over the summer and they have been instructed as to what they can harvest and when.
Back in the good ol’ days (as I instantly age myself), a good bike adventure was a daily part of summer. Some change in your jeans for a Popsicle or two and a good destination made for daily adventure and occasionally misadventure, if you were lucky.
Back then, of course, there was usually a mom who was able to stay at home and pretty much force you to go outside, rain or shine. TV was for cartoons in the morning and, if we were good, maybe a show or two at night.
Todays’ kids don’t all have that luxury of a stay at home mom or dad. We have all heard about the negative effects of too much “screen time” for kids. The American Academy of Paediatrics notes that children between eight and 18 average 7.5 hours of screen time a day which is resulting in major health problems, including childhood obesity and behavioural and mental health issues such as depression and anxiety.
Luckily there are lots of great day trip adventures for kids in our communities, including Centennial Beach, Watershed Park, various waterparks, pools and parks.
Put the allowance in their pockets and push those kids out the door on their bikes in the morning (after breakfast, of course). They will have a blast, especially if they don’t have a phone to distract them.
Mike Schneider is founder of Project Pickle and likes to write about growing, cooking and eating food. He is a Jamie Oliver Food Revolution ambassador.
