By Kirk Starratt
Students had the chance to learn some valuable lessons and enjoy a wide variety of healthy, local food this year in New Minas.
New Minas Elementary students planted a garden this year and everyone got to enjoy the fruits of their labours.
Lynne Fuller’s Grade 3 class was among the students who got to enjoy a spaghetti dinner Dec. 14. She said all sorts of crops were harvested and some of the vegetables were frozen.
Chef Paul Thimot and students from the Culinary Arts program at the Nova Scotia Community College Kingstec Campus made the pasta sauce from ingredients grown in the elementary school garden. Fuller said their contribution was greatly appreciated.
Student Trissa Matheson said she hasn’t had a chance to do much gardening at home in her yard, but enjoyed getting to help with the school garden
“It actually was really fun,” she said, adding the sauce was “really good.”
Nathan Amoah-Gyekye said he has enjoyed the healthy treats from the garden and agreed the pasta was tasty.
Chris Fraser said he now appreciates that healthy food can be tasty and a lot of fun.
“We got to pick some potatoes,” Emma Joyce added. “We got to have five turns each.”
Fuller said her students delivered meals to everyone in the school over a week.
“It’s been a really good multi-disciplinary experience for them,” she said.
Fuller credits Monica Sgambati, a parent at the school, for being the driving force behind the garden. Other parents helped prepare the meals and Michelle Muise, who runs the school breakfast program, was there helping everyday.
Other foods students got to enjoy from the garden include salsa, roasted vegetables and cucumber and tomato slices.
“We’ve been able to give the students many things from the garden,” Fuller said, pointing out that there are aspects of the project tying into the curriculum of all grade levels at the school. Lessons learned included, how to follow a recipe as well as public speaking experience explaining various aspects of the project during their visits to other classes
Fuller said the school is thankful as well to Home Depot for donating a shed to the school to house the garden tools.
