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16 May 2013

Proof the programme works



Findings from a new Australian Government-funded independent evaluation have found our affiliate, The Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation, is providing a wealth of benefits to Australian school children.

More children are taking up cooking at home and starting backyard veggie gardens after participating in the national programme.

The findings have the potential to change the way educators view the benefits of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden National Program in Australian primary schools. The evaluation found real health behaviour change for children, families and school communities participating in the Program.

The Garden to Table trust will be releasing the findings of our two year study in June. Initial reporting has found similar results to those from this study of our Australian counterpart.

We hope our findings will assist us in securing the support of the Government here in New Zealand
.

Key findings from the Australian evaluation include:

  • 97% of teachers responded positively to how the Program supported classroom learning. They reported that students found the hands-on activities engaging and it aided learning across other subject areas, commenting that the Program ‘forms an intrinsic part of our students’ learning’.
  • Students in Kitchen Garden National Program schools were more likely to report that they would always try new foods as compared to students in comparison schools. The proportion was higher if the students had grown or cooked the foods themselves.
  • Participating students, staff and school communities all reported that the Kitchen Garden National Program had made positive impacts on the school and students.
  • Teachers and parents reported improvements in students’ social behaviours, with 86% of teachers reporting improvements in students’ teamwork skills and 50% of parents reporting improvements across a range of student behaviours, including modifying previous bullying behaviour, managing difficult behaviour, interacting with people of many ages, leadership skill development and sense of pride in the school.
  • More children are taking up cooking at home and starting backyard veggie gardens after participating in the Kitchen Garden National Program.

The independent evaluation was included 28 Kitchen Garden National Program Schools and 14 comparison schools form across Australia. The evaluation was funded by the Australian Government and conducted by the Centre for Health Service Development, Australian Health Services Research Institute, at the University of Wollongong. 

Click here to view the final evalution report on the Centre for Health Service Development's website.
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16 May 2013

We're celebrating Food Revolution Day




We're celebrating Food Revolution Day 2013 to mark our own little revolution here in New Zealand.

The kids will be doing various activities across the schools and Breakfast TV will be visiting us at Edendale Primary. 

Check us out on Breakfast at 8:45 am and head to the Food Revolution website to see how you can join in the celebration!



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16 May 2013

Statement on today's Budget


Media statement 
May 16, 2013   


TEACH A MAN TO FISH 
Where's the long term solution to youth hunger?   

Hungry children perform poorly in school and are more prone to becoming social outcasts with all the ensuing downstream problems. We all acknowledge children are going to school hungry - it's been all over the media in recent days. 

But where are the long term initiatives to solve this significant problem? Today's budget contains no solutions. Also, providing free lunches for kids in school is only a short term answer that puts the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. 

We need to provide our kids with the skills they need, not only to feed themselves, but also to acquire a more positive attitude to food and socialisation, and become stable and productive members of society later on. To paraphrase a well-known proverb, by teaching children to fish they can feed themselves for life. 

Garden to Table Trust operates a programme in New Zealand schools where children aged between seven and 10 learn about good food and life skills. The youngsters are taught how to grow, harvest, prepare and share food in their school's gardens and kitchen facilities. 

They also learn about the environment and sustainability and enrich their curriculum subjects through hands-on learning. A recent research study shows that the programme also has many positive spin-offs for family and community life. 

The Garden to Table programme has been running for four years, and now thousands of children from 15 schools across NZ are enjoying the programme. And there are more than 60 schools waiting to join them, but there are many challenges in obtaining funding. 

The cost of introducing such a programme as ours would be but a drop in the bucket for the government when you consider the benefits. Our programme is based on Australia's Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program. The Australian government recently announced a new $5.4 million funding commitment to support that programme during the next three years to provide opportunity for 400 new schools to join. 

Initiatives that provide long term benefits for the children and their families and also for the nation need to be fostered. Garden to Table's activities are a leading example of a proven long term solution that government needs to support. 

Catherine Bell,Chairperson, Garden to Table Trust Tel: +64-9-377 8925, Mob: +64-21-471 973, email:c.bell@gardentotable.org.nz<mailto:c.bell@gardentotable.org.nz>    
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garden to table

Stephanie Alexander

Pleasurable food education:
skills for learning, skills for life

As the New Zealand affiliate to The Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation, Garden to Table is growing a food revolution from the ground up!

Garden to Table aims to change the way children approach and think about food. We hope that over the next few years Garden to Table will allow children across the country to enthusiastically get their hands dirty and learn how to grow, harvest, prepare and share fresh, seasonal food.

The fundamental philosophy that underpins the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program and therefore Garden to Table, is that by setting good examples and engaging children’s curiosity, as well as their energy and their taste buds, we can provide positive and memorable food experiences that will form the basis of positive lifelong eating habits.

The revolution rumbled into action in 2001, when renowned cook and food writer Stephanie Alexander OAM joined forces with an inner-Melbourne school community to establish the Kitchen Garden Program at Collingwood College. Stephanie’s pioneering approach to food education is now flourishing in many schools around Australia.

The New Zealand Garden to Table Programme begin in 2008 when New Zealand food writer and cook Catherine Bell gathered a group of like-minded people together. Three pilot schools joined in 2009 and  there are now seven schools involved in the Programme with four more due to join over the next year.

Garden to Table schools commit to a dynamic and innovative model that sees kitchen and garden classes run weekly, enabling skills-based learning that extends across the entire school curriculum.

As participants in the Garden to Table Programme, seven to 10 year-old children spend time in a productive veggie garden and home-style kitchen each week. There they learn skills that will last them a lifetime, and discover just how much fun it is to grow and cook their own seasonal vegetables and fruits.

Most of the Garden to Table schools are located in Auckland, except one in Thames, but we are committed to signing up schools for  other areas around New Zealand, as our resources and funding permit. They cross all decile levels and each has its own challenges and successes. But all are united in their passion to bring the benefits of food education to their students.

Learn more about how to become a Garden to Table School.

This year, over 200 schools around Australia are apart of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation, with around 20,000 children actively engaged in the Kitchen Garden Program each year. Now, that’s a revolution!

You can help us to ensure as many New Zealand children have the same opportunity.

Learn how you can help.