OCR Text |
Show School Lunch Needs Attention School systems would improve the efficiency of their students by making mak-ing the lunch period just as important import-ant a part in their program as is any subject in the curriculum, says Miss Elna Miller, nutritionist of the Utah State Agricultural college extension ex-tension service. Provision should be made for a hot dish every day and all students encouraged to take advantage of it. The lunch box from home should be popularized and frequent discussion of its essential contents made. The noon meal served at school and supervised by a parent or teach-packed teach-packed than is his, is not slow in telling his mother about it. After creating a wholesome environment en-vironment for an adequate school lunch the next concern is to make that adequate lunch available. A hot dish made with milk is essential. Sandwiches, salads and raw vegetables vege-tables or fruits will complete the lunch. The student whose lunch contains something hot has a much better chance of being physically fit and mentally alert than does tire one who brings a cold lunch or none at all, or who carries that all-too-common jelly sandwich wrapped in a newspaper and throws it into the waste basket because it is too soggy and unappetizing to be eaten, Miss Miller says. There are several ways of attacking attack-ing the problem of the hot lunch. Perhaps the simplest way is for each 1111111 IAJ Ullllg iXi 11UU ULlUft. enjup Ui milk drink in a thermos bottle. In some rural schools the board of education ed-ucation has supplied wrash boilers which are placed on the flat top of the furnace or stove. Each child brings his hot food in a small fruit jar. At about 11:30 a. m. these jars are placed on the rack in the boiler which contains a small amount of hot water. By noon each child has his hot food ready with very little effort. Parent Teacher associations or women's olubs could sponsor the project pro-ject and have different women appointed ap-pointed for a few days at a time, to prepare and serve the food. One woman may be employed to prepare and serve the hot food for the entire year. Some schools have the child-er child-er affords an excellent opportunity for instilling good ideals of table ettiquette and social courtesies. It also acts as a check on the mother's preparation and naekiner of t.hf lunch sent from home. The child I whose neighbor is eating a lunch which is more carefully prepared and ren bring vegetables and milk and other foods from home, while in other cases organizations, during the summer, have prepared for the hot dish by canning, storing and drying vegetables to be used for this purpose. pur-pose. Meat and meat soups have been canned so that last minute preparations will be less difficult. From the standpoint of students, teachers, parents and persons pre- paring the food, there are advantages advan-tages to placing the responsibility with the same person for the entire year and letting the students pay cash for their hot dish, Miss Miller -advises. o |