Kindergarten students at James Elementary were the first to participate in the Midwest Great Apple Crunch event at their school. The event was sponsored locally by ISU Extension and FoodCorps. All Ottumwa elementary schools participating in the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program received apples for today’s event.
The event hopes to encourage students to eat healthy snacks and promote Farm to School initiatives. It is also an opportunity to connect food and nutrition to the classroom.
Before taking their first bite, students participated in a story in motion, learning about how apples are grown, picked, sorted, transported, and stored until sold. Students learned that most apples in the store come from Washington or California, traveling over 25 hours to reach Iowa. The green apples provided for this event came from Donnellson, Iowa.
Each student received an apple and everyone took their first bite at the same time. There was a collective “mmmmm” heard from the entire group.
