By Erin Frustaci
efrustaci@fortcollinsnow.com, (Bio) efrustaci@fortcollinsnow.com
1:05 a.m. MT Apr 12, 2008

Sample of survey results:

Why do you eat what you do for lunch? “Tastes Good”—38 percent “Cheap”—8 percent “Healthy”—8 percent “Hungry”—36 percent “Free/Reduced lunch”—4 percent “Because I don’t get this at home”—2 percent “Other”—3 percent Do your parents influence your decision for lunch? Always—14 percent Usually—8 percent Sometimes—31 percent Never—47 percent Is there a problem with kids choosing unhealthy lunches? Yes—53 percent No—44 percent Maybe—3 percent How many servings of each does the school sell in a week? Ice cream—200 Cookies—2,500 Salad bars—50 Fruit—50 Outside vendors—515 School lunches—1,250 French fries—750

If a student at Preston Junior High ate a cookie a day for a year, he or she would have consumed four pounds of sugar. And since the school sells three of them for a dollar, many students consume more than just one a day.

That was one of a handful of facts that eighth-graders discussed during class this week. They also talked about how the school sells 2,500 cookies a week, which is 50 times more than the number of salads sold from the salad bar. Beyond that, they debated whether or not there was a problem the choices of food at their school and how to diplomatically bring about change.

It was a typical discussion in Ryan Martine’s classroom. If an outsider were to sit in, they might have guessed he taught health. But Martine is a math teacher.

“I try to use real life examples,” he said.

Instead of just having students do problem after problem from a hefty math book, Martine often encourages critical thinking by making his classroom interactive and by incorporating community issues into his teachings.

Martine decided to have his students do a nutrition project after reading the March 7 article about school lunch choices in Fort Collins Now. He had three eighth-grade math classes survey between 70-175 students and collect nutritional information from lunchroom staff to see just how many healthy or unhealthy choices are made at Preston. The lesson incorporated math by using ratio proportions, pie charts and data analysis, but it also branched into nutrition and civic engagement.

On Monday, the classes met to discuss the results and brainstorm what could be done to address the problem.

The compiled results from the surveys suggested that 38 percent of the students eat what they do because it “tastes good,” compared to 8 percent who made their selections because they were “healthy.” It also showed that about 18 percent of students buy from outside vendors who sell restaurant-style food in the cafeteria, 27 percent purchase school lunches, 34 percent bring a sack lunch from home, 15 percent buy a la carte items and only 7 percent eat from the salad bar.

“It was surprising how many kids get things because they taste good,” said eighth-grader Laura Rye.

To spread awareness at school, her group suggested bringing in bags of sugar and cans of grease to illustrate how much of it exists in certain food items. Other groups suggested including some of the information in parent newsletters, limiting the outside vendors, changing where the unhealthy food is located and offering more snack items that have a higher nutritional value.

Scott Nielsen, the principal at Preston Junior High, said the school is constantly making conscious attempts at incorporating more interactive activities in the classroom.

“Learning for the students is much more enriching when it is relevant to them,” Nielsen said. “Integrated learning happens all the time in life.”

He was particularly impressed that Martine took the time to invite members from the community to participate in the discussion because that also energized the kids. Melissa Wdowik, director of the nutrition center at Colorado State University, attended the class to share her professional perspective on the issue.

After listening to the conversation at different tables, she said the students’ opinions were typical for their age and represented both ends of the spectrum.

“I don’t think they solved anything, but they definitely stirred things up,” she said.

Daniel Hyatt was one of several students who did not think there was a problem and opposed any change to the current lunch program.

“I don’t want people telling me what I can and can’t eat, outside of my family,” he said. “No one here is that unhealthy, so I don’t see why it matters.”

Martine was glad that Hyatt and several others shared differing opinions. He said he is planning a follow-up discussion on what should be done and how to address the issue.

Unlike a math equation, Martine pointed out that his classes won’t be able to solve the problem in a day, but he’s heartened that the conversations have started. And, after all, that’s exactly the way policy works.

“Really, this is how math works in your life,” Martine said as he wrapped up the class discussion. “You take the information on a perceived problem and gather as much evidence as you can. ... The more work you do, the more you are able to convince others of your opinion.

“There are also plenty of health goals established out of this,” he added.

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