Green Beans - Harvest of the Month

Adventurous ActivitiesProblem Solving:n Use the pods and beansfrom the Taste Testingactivity (page 1) in mathequations, fractions, and todemonstrate multiplicationtables.Example:● If there are four podsand each pod containsthree beans, how manybeans are there total?History Exploration:n Trace the history of the green bean back to its originsin ancient Mesoamerica. Have students research thenative populations that cultivated beans and how theyused them (e.g., food, medicine, religion). Assign groupsof students with a region in North, Central, or SouthAmerica and have each group do a presentation.Creative Writing:n Use green beans in a poetry assignment or for adiscussion on literary elements such as alliteration,rhyming, onomatopoeia, similes, and metaphors.For more ideas, visit:www.nal.usda.gov/kidsS tudent ChampionsHave students brainstorm and gather their favorite healthygreen bean recipes. Ask students to visit their favoriterestaurant to ask what kind of green bean dishes they haveavailable; then offer to provide them with healthy recipesfeaturing green beans to promote as a “school special.”Offer to include special student-made artwork to help therestaurant show they are supporting a local school.Literature Linksn Primary: One Bean by Anne Rockwell, Jack and theBean Stalk by Steven Kellogg, Beyond the Beanstalk–Gardening Activities for Kids by Nancy Allen Jarenka,Explore the Magic World of California Beans by theCalifornia Dry Bean Advisory Board, and Vegetables(Good for Me!) by Sally Hewitt.n Secondary: 10 Terrific Vegetables and EverythingYou Need to Grow and Know Them by the NationalGardening Association and Spill the Beans and Pass thePeanuts: Legumes by Meredith Sayles Hughes.Physical Activity CornerStudents will progress through the life cycle of a greenbean plant by playing Rock-Paper-Scissors with otherstudents.n All students start out as seeds by walking low to theground with arms wrapped around head until a signal isgiven to find a partner.n Students play one game of Rock-Paper-Scissors with apartner.n The winner becomes a sprout by walking upright withhands on top of head, wrists together, and fingerspointing up. The other student remains a seed.n Continue the game until all students have grown from aseed, to a sprout, and finally to a green bean vine witharms outstretched and swaying.n Students may only pair up with another student who is atthe same stage.Adapted from: Physical Activity Specialist, Northcoast Region,Network for a Healthy California, 2011.For more ideas, visit:www.letsmove.govCafeteria ConnectionsWork with your schoolnutrition staff to conducta contest to determineyour school’s favorite fruitand favorite vegetable.Make it simple by usingposter boards to print outthe names and picturesof various fruits andvegetables (one fruitor vegetable per board). Post the boards in the cafeteriaand give every student two colored dots: red for fruits andgreen for vegetables. Students can then vote by placingthe dot on their favorite fruit and vegetable. Older studentscan help with tallying the results. You can also involveschool staff to vote for their favorites. Post all results in acommon location to share with students and staff.For more ideas, reference:Fruits and Vegetables Galore, USDA, 2004.This material was produced by the California Department of Public Health’s Network for a Healthy California with funding from USDASNAP, known in California as CalFresh (formerly Food Stamps). These institutions are equal opportunity providers and employers.CalFresh provides assistance to low-income households and can help buy nutritious foods for better health. For CalFresh information,call 1-877-847-3663. For important nutrition information, visit www.cachampionsforchange.net. © 2011