Food Revolution! Free Fruit Friday & Cardio Carnival: Creating Healthy Schools

Tired of the ice cream vendors, soda machines and unhealthy cafeteria food at your school?Take matters into your own hands and put on Free Fruit Friday & Cardio Carnival at your school!Inspired by Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, I got together with the other parents at my son's public school to create the healthiest, MOST attended after-school Friday celebration ever!When my son started attending kindergarten at our local Brooklyn public school, I joined the Wellness Committee.A small group of parents, plus the dedicated librarian, applied for and won a health grant of $2500 from the city, and we decided to use part of it to put on a Cardio Carnival. The local YMCA, who runs our after school programs, came on board to teach a Hip Hop dance class and a Zumba class - to parents, teachers, and kids alike.Normally, Fridays include Bingo, prizes and pizza.For about $750, our school was able to provide a healthy, fun night of dance, friends, and great food.Our Free Fruit Friday plan included free organic fruit handed out to the families when parents picked up their young ones after school. With the sun shining down on our courtyard, the glistening oranges and apples were a huge hit and all the fruit was snapped up by happy, hungry kids.(*Thanks to all of you who donated between $1-$5 to help buy more fruit for the FFF! The kids LOVED IT!)At 5pm, families returned to the school gym for a rockin' Hip Hop dance class - you know the class is a hit when parents join in and 5th grade boys throw themselves in the mix and dance in public!After the dance class, kids and their folks ran to our Build Your Own Burrito Bar with tortillas, beans, rice, tomatoes, avocados and toppings. The food was healthy, fresh, and only cost $300 to feel over 100 people.During Zumba class, kids could also run in relay races outside, and an after-dinner Green Smoothie bar served refreshing drinks instead of soda.Green Smoothie Recipe:1 banana1 cup frozen wild blueberries4-5 kale leaves1 1/2 cup water* Blend until smooth and enjoy!The FFF and CC was a huge hit - our school wants to do it again next year!Inspired? Put on your own! Let me know if you put together a night like this for your school, and send me some pictures or post to Facebook.Here's to your health!XO, Alex