Students Helping Students On Nutrition

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From Your Health Journal…..”A great story from the Register Star by Katie Kocijanski about older students educating younger students about nutrition. Lessons were taught about reducing the high fructose corn syrup in foods to help oneself stay healthier. The message was to know what you are eating, making sure it is not harmful to you over time, while teaching young children to start eating healthy early in life, so these habits carry over into adulthood. The older students did a nutrition experiment with the younger students on nutrition. The experiment sought to determine the volume of high-fructose corn syrup in a can of Coca Cola. The 162 student volunteers were trained by fellow members of the Citizen Science program to teach students the experiment. Please visit the Register Star home page (link provided below) to read the complete article.”

From the article…..

A group of Bard student volunteers and the Mental Health Association of Columbia-Greene Counties (MHACG) came together Saturday to teach local children about the value of nutrition and the ill effects of high-fructose corn syrup. Hosted by the Solaris Camphill Hudson, the Bard students were very enthusiastic about their cause.

“We all need to be aware of what’s in the things we drink and eat. Starting to teach kids this at an early age is important, “ said Bard freshman Jessica Boyd.

Boyd was one of 15 students who took part in the event. The volunteers at the event are freshman students currently participating in the college’s Citizen Science program, through the Center for Civic Engagement. The volunteer program, in its third year, is designed to expose first-year students to natural science and the different ideas of the scientific method.

The program encompassed designing a laboratory experiment for the Kingston Middle Schools that focused on solving a specific scientific problem that students in grades 6-8 could relate to. Through his own vendetta against high-fructose corn syrup, Bard junior Jasper Williams and other students in the program began to develop their own experiment.

“I was surprised at how much of an impact it had on the students,” said Bard freshman Sam Dore.

The experiment sought to determine the volume of high-fructose corn syrup in a can of Coca Cola. The 162 student volunteers were trained by fellow members of the Citizen Science program to teach students the experiment.

It was shown to more than 1,000 students in J. Watson Bailey Miller Middle School and M. Clifford Miller Middle School.

The experiment generated an overall positive response from students and teachers at the middle schools. Williams remarked how students were even leaving and telling their fellow classmates that they didn’t want to drink soda anymore after seeing the experiment.

“By maintaining an enthusiastic and positive attitude while teaching, we hoped to inspire and generate interest in science and going to college,” said Williams.

To read the full article…..Click here