	Division of Nutrition Assistance
	National School Lunch Program
	School Breakfast Program
	Child and Adult Care Food Program (center-based and home-based)
	Summer Food Service Program
	Special Milk Program
	Nutrition Education/Team Nutrition
	Child Nutrition Website
	Staff Directory

Jazzy Food and Nutrition Bulletin Board Ideas

Division of Nutrition Assistance

Get Growing from the Ground Up

Directions for Design
A tree with fruit is depicted, along with various vegetables, showing how the edible parts of vegetables grow above or below ground.

Suggested Materials

Illustrations of a tree with apples and various vegetables growing above and below the ground
Artwork of a sun
Lettering for title at top of board and words near ground

Learning Activities

1. Review the parts of a plant.
Use a flower to illustrate the roots, which grow underground; the stem, which supports the plant; the leaves along the stem; and the flower at the top. Ask the students to name some of their favorite fruits. Explain that all foods with seeds inside are called the fruits of plants. Point out that we also eat the seeds of some plants, such as corn, dry beans, and nuts.

2. Vegetables and fruits are plant parts.
Take a trip to a market, garden, farm, or orchard with the students and look for foods that are examples of roots, stems, leaves, fruits, flowers and seeds. If a field trip isn’t possible, bring in a few examples of foods from each plant part. Discuss how the edible parts of various fruits, vegetables and grains come from different parts of the plant. Specific examples include the following:

Leafy Crops
- Leaves: kale, mustard and turnip greens, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, Brussels sprouts
- Flowers: broccoli, cauliflower
- Stems: asparagus, celery, mushrooms, broccoli
Root Crops
- Roots: beets, onions, carrots, parsnips, turnips, radishes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams
Fruit Crops
- Seeds: peas, beans, corn, oats, rice, sunflower seeds
- Pods: green beans, okra, chili peppers, peas
- Fruits: apples, oranges, peaches, bananas, strawberries, nuts

3. What is a fruit?
Fruits are edible seed bearing parts of a plant. Cut open apples, oranges, tomatoes, squash, pumpkin, eggplant, peaches, blueberries, bananas, and avocados. Note the seeds inside. Nuts are seeds borne in fruits having hard shells. Break open peanuts, almonds, etc.

Fruits that grow from trees: pears, apples, peaches, mayhaws
Fruits that grow from vines: grapes, kiwi, cantaloupe, muscadines
Fruits that grow from bushes: raspberries

4. Plant an indoor garden.
Plant dried beans (lima or kidney beans for example) in cups filled with potting soil. Plant the seeds to a depth indicated on the seed packet. Moisten the soil thoroughly and keep it moist without over watering it. Place the cup in a sunny place. Watch the seeds sprout in three to 17 days. Keep the soil moist and watch the seedlings grow.

Grow carrots, onions, or bean seeds in a clear container such as a small aquarium so that the class can observe the network of roots. Discuss why roots grow in many different directions.

5. What’s on your plate?
Assign students to record the fruits, vegetables, and grains they eat each day for one week. Ask them to make a second column on their paper where they can identify the parts of the plants from which those foods come.

6. Make a salad that features different plant parts.
For example, you might include radishes (roots), spinach (leaves), celery (stems), broccoli (flowers), tomatoes (fruits), and peas or sesame seeds (seeds).

Place all the ingredients on a table and examine them.
Note that the root vegetables grow underground, just like the roots of a plant.
Compare the celery and spinach to the stem and leaves of a house plant or flowers outdoors.
Cut open the tomato to see the seeds inside.
Use a magnifying glass to look closely at the broccoli florets. Point out that each is a bud, just like a flower waiting to open.
Cut open a pea pod and point out the little plant from which new pea plants would grow.

Invite children to help wash the salad ingredients. They can tear up the spinach leaves while you use a sharp knife to cut up the celery, radishes, broccoli, and tomatoes. Make grains part of the snack by tossing in some croutons, or serve bread on the side. Toss with a light dressing. As you enjoy the salad together, ask the students to name the plant parts they’re eating.

For more bulletin board ideas:
Page 1 ~ Page 2 ~ Page 3
Jazzy Main Menu

	Executive Office of the Superintendent
	School and Community Support
	Student and School Performance
	Quality Educators
	Management and Finance
	Regional Service Centers