December Primary Newsletter
Take up the School Challenge!
Why not register your school for The Year of Food and Farming School Challenge?
The scheme, which is open to all schools in England, is being run by the Specialist
Schools and Academies Trust. To take part, schools must organise a project,
or projects, which lead to the realisation of one or more of the aims of the
Year of Food and Farming. The closing date for schools to register their projects
is 31 December 2007.
To register a project, download an application form from www.schoolsnetwork.org.uk
by clicking on specialism and then rural. Alternatively email [email protected]
to request a form.
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RSPCA resources
The RSPCA has produced five exciting new GCSE Science farming resources that
explore the impact of farming on farm animal welfare. The resources support
students in learning where food comes from, the use of labelling, and how they,
as consumers, can make a difference to farm animal welfare. For further details
visit
the RSPCA’s website.
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Secondary schools round-up
Schools have been telling us about some of the projects that they have set
up as part of the Year of Food and Farming. Here’s a couple:
Southgate School
Southgate
School is a large secondary school of 1600 pupils, in Cockfosters, North
London. They have been working towards Eco School Status and this year hope
to meet all the criteria to gain their Green Flag. Their current project is
to set up a vegetable garden where pupils will use the produce in Food Technology
lessons and sell it at local farmers’ markets. They have a large
established Wildlife area and have also just received funding to install
solar panels into the school roof.
Lothingland Middle School
Lothingland
Middle School has 450 students and is set in beautiful rural surroundings
close to Lowestoft, Suffolk. They are members of the 'Healthy Schools Suffolk'
scheme and grow their own vegetables in their Kitchen Garden for use at School.
Members of the School Gardening Club are posting regular blogs about gardening
on the Year of Food and Farming website.
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Food and farming in the news this month
A full stomach aids learning
Research undertaken by the School Food Trust has found robust evidence to support the idea that children are more attentive
in afternoon classes when they have eaten well at lunchtime. Findings from the School Lunch and Behaviour Study show a
clear link between changes in lunchtime food provision and dining environment and children's behaviour in the
classroom. Indeed, the study found that children from the intervention schools were 3½ times more likely to be on task and engaged with the teacher with learning activities in the hour after lunch than those children in the control schools.
Source: School Food Trust website, 3/12/07
To read the full report, visit
the School Food Trust website.
The great organic food debate
Last year demand for organic food rose by 22% as Britons spent £37 million each week on organic
produce. However, experts still disagree about the merits or otherwise of organic food compared to
conventionally farmed produce.
A recent study by Newcastle University found that organic food contains more nutrients and less of the
undesirable compounds than ordinary produce. Fruit, vegetables and cattle were produced on adjacent
organic and non-organic sites and it was found that the organic fruit and vegetables contained up to
40% more antioxidants than the non-organic varieties. In addition, the levels of antioxidants in
organic milk were between 50% and 80% higher than ordinary milk. High levels of minerals such as
iron and zinc were also found in the organic food. Further results of this study are due to be published
over the next 12 months. The FSA is also due to publish a report evaluating the nutrient value of organic
food next year but until then its advice remains that there is not enough conclusive evidence to support
the view that organic food is nutritionally superior.
Doubt has also been cast on claims that organic food production causes less damage to the environment.
A report by Manchester Business School, for instance, found that the environmental benefits of organic
food were not clear cut, that there is no clear evidence to support the view that locally sourced produce
is more environmentally friendly than globally sourced produce and that, indeed, for some foods, global
sourcing may be a better alternative environmentally. Similarly, a recent report by Nottingham University
found that the carbon footprint of organic systems is actually significantly higher than conventional
farming as organic weed control, it was discovered, uses almost double the amount of energy required in
conventional production systems.
Sources: Soil Association, 30/10/07; BBC website, 29/10/07;
Times Online 1/9/07; Farmers Weekly Interactive website 19/2/07 & 5/11/07; Farmers Guardian 8/11/07
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Practical ideas
The following three lesson ideas provide practical suggestions for incorporating
seasonal Christmas food into the curriculum.
- Students could use the internet to find a number of healthy, balanced recipes
for a Christmas lunch menu. They could then choose one of the dishes to cook
as part of a D&T Food technology lesson.
- Alternatively, students could suggest a range of food items to include in
a ‘healthy Christmas hamper’. Within this activity students could
even create two different hampers – one containing all locally sourced produce,
and another including foods sourced from around the world.
- As an extension to the ‘healthy Christmas hampers’ activity,
the students could consider the challenges of setting up and running a company
to market their hampers, as part of a Business Studies topic.
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