Some food for thought

This week's session was a little unusual, between the grey clouds, sporadic rains and few children, we decided to challenge the skies and to stay out on the Plaza. Geoconda and Gladys from the UMSC were back with some of last week' s puppets introducing a few of their follows such as a beetroot, yucca, and a carrot… Because, as they had pointed out at length last week (On the importance of hand washing- and beyond), part of taking care of yourself and being healthy, is about eating well.

We waited patiently for our kids, some of which were busy finishing off their homework, dropped by those we knew to remind them that Jerome, the French chef who also runs a renowned restaurant in Quito(http://www.chezjeromerestaurante.com/), would be sharing a few cooking tips with us… Except it took him a little longer than expected to get there but we´ll cover that later! ;0

So Geoconda and Gladys today chose to sit in a circle and engineer their puppets openly sharing with the kids the virtues of some key foods…such as beans and pees, along with bananas and oranges…With the kids, we understood many things, such as how when you don´t have meat, beans also have the power to bring you the same vital proteins, if not more.
After that, we played a few games, and set out for an experiment that we hope to draw sensible conclusions: we said goodbye to a few coins and a few beans left over from our appetizers with the puppets to a Coca Cola drink… Next week, we will observe what happened to them all…pure sugar in practice. The idea behind this exercise, along with many others that day, was for the kids to understand that with a certain amount of money you can choose to drink a coke but also elect to have water, purchase an ice cream but for the same price buy a bag of beans, which will help you feel better, stronger and most importantly, will be more nutritious.

These notions of choice, taste and health were reinforced by Jerome... who finally made it- Quito can be difficult city to travel through in times of pouring rain and demonstrations…;0 After having sought shelter in the Covento San Franscisco during the hard rain where we carried on playing a few games, the Tianguez Café invited us for an oats drink… Ok, the real secret was that once Jerome had unveiled how to cook ùp his scrumptious menu on the Plaza, the kids would be having a little tasting session in the café! As things never go as planned, we were there before the chef, the menu, and very close to not having any tasting…

Despite the fact we were well past the end of the session though, all the kids were game and stayed on to listen to this person who had elected the strange profession of sharing his passion for food by preparing balanced meals using unusual greens that grow by side roads, like thistle for example! That was on our menu, along with quinoa balls and marinated tomatoes and a simple strawberry salad - all affordable goods from the local market &/or store.

So Jerome displayed his platters and ingredients to the kids, asking them what they eat and how they or their parents prepare meals…After sharing with them the benefits of some of these in both sight and taste and ensuring we know how to prepare these sensibly (rinsing, changing cooking oil regularly, diversifying ingredients, etc.), we then launched into the proper ¨dégustation¨. The kids devoured, some liked, some knew, others tried and burnt their tongues but all made up a mind of their own and understood what they were eating, what good it could bring them and how simple it was to make it so.

Next week we will move on, thanks to our team of Fe y Alegria pedagogists, to what is the right to education. Lorena & Christian will share with the kids what is education beyond that of a schoolroom and how experience and learning are to be found in our daily activities…as, at the end of the day, it is all about being in-tune with what surrounds you and reading life.

Keep on watching this space…