Meals and Muppets

In this cross-disciplinary project, students looked at the essential question: “Should I eat that?”  Inspired from student voices criticizing our school’s lunch program, we dove deeply into a holistic investigation about the food we eat.  Students read Omnivore’s Dilemma, watched various documentaries, and explored the nutritional values and science behind the everyday food they were consuming.  We began the year with a critical conversation as a team about the work we were about to engage in. The voices of our students were clear, they wanted to create a product that would have lasting value and impact.  Using the magic of the Maker movement through muppet building and filmmaking, our students transformed their learning about food justice, urban farming, and making healthy food choices into a professionally produced movie, using muppets as a tool to engage our kindergarten students in our neighboring elementary school, HTe.

Student Reflections

“Sharing the message of eating and living healthy using muppets was an idea that seemed far-fetched and wild from the beginning. Now, staring around the classroom, I marvel and bask in the glory of our beautiful work. I’m so glad to have been able to participate in such a wonderful and unique project, and to know that I left a positive impact on my Kindergarten friends and families, helps me understand that I have the power to make a difference.”  - Adrian Sandoval
“When you are young, you are highly impressionable, so by teaching  our kindergarten buddies about making healthy choices that will help and impact their lives, we are assuring positive and healthy habits they won’t easily let go.”  ​- Jessica Watkins