everything curriculum | April 2019


We can all see the links between physical health and mental health, and how one can affect the other. If you are in good physical health, then this will hopefully help to contribute to a positive mental health. With this in mind, I’m going to focus this article on physical health, looking at the requirements in the curriculum and providing some ideas that could be applied in your school. By no means is this intended to be an exhaustive list, and in some cases they may be things you already do, but as a food professional (and mother) I take an interest in this area.


In September 2014, cooking and food education became compulsory in the national curriculum for primary school children. With the following outlined:


“As part of their work with food, pupils should be taught how to cook and apply the principles of nutrition and healthy eating. Instilling a love of cooking in pupils will also open a door to one of the great expressions of human creativity. Learning how to cook is a crucial life skill that enables pupils to feed themselves and others affordably and well, now and in later life.”1


This was a fantastic development but no doubt quite daunting for schools. How do you cover this in lessons and embed it into school life in a fun way that keeps children’s interest, so that they learn and develop?


A few ideas you might want to try…


Provide samples


While children are waiting for their lunch why not provide little bowls of new fruits and vegetables for them to try? It will spark their curiosity as to what they are and also gives them the choice of if they want to try it.


You might also want to include little bowls of fruit, vegetables or spices on the table for them to taste while they are eating their food.


Create a school allotment/garden


Getting children involved in growing fruit and vegetables gives them an understanding of where their food comes from. Children who are growing their own fruit and vegetables will see the connection between plant and plate much more clearly, and are more likely to try new flavours, feel a better connection to their food and choose healthier options.


Introduce a weekly rota to get all pupils involved and don’t forget to make sure you have suitable gardening tools for the children.


Get the children to cook with things they have grown or include these on the next school menu. This encourages them to try the food as they have made it themselves.


Track their progress


Introduce an ‘I tried it chart’ as a visual way for the children to record the foods they’ve tried. You could also challenge them to try a certain number of different flavours a week.


Influence their choices


You know it yourself from visiting a supermarket, you are drawn to certain foods or items based on where they are positioned in the shop. They are a more likely to attract your attention at eye level or on displays at the end of aisles. Influence children’s food choices, by putting healthier food options in school at their eye level so they are more likely to notice them.


Set up a school–based cooking club


Let’s Get Cooking, the nation’s biggest network of healthy, school– based cooking clubs, was created by the Children’s Food Trust in 2007; reaching nearly three million people. A school–based cooking club is a great way to bring schools, children and families together. Find out more at letsgetcooking.org.uk


Encourage children to use their imagination


Look at ways you can make cooking seem more exciting to a child. You could tie it into a favourite book or give it a twist, so it doesn’t feel like cooking to them. For example, linking to George’s Marvellous Medicine, you could get them to mix baking ingredients. Other ideas could be to get them to make a spell in a cauldron (soup), grill kebabs over a campfire like mountain climbers or get them to try different foods of the world such as tapas, curry, paella etc.


1. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national–curriculum–in– england–design–and–technology–programmes–of–study/national– curriculum–in–england–design–and–technology–programmes–of–study


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