Food Art

Thank you to Ms. Porco (art teacher for Promise 1 upper elementary) for the beautiful art work. This painting was created by 28 students to form 1 incredible piece of art. This painting is inspired by Andy Warhols 1968 Campbells Soup painting.

Andrew Warhola (August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987), known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art.

Thank you again.

It's A New Year, and it's time for a New You!

As 2012 get's started, many of us around HCZ are thinking more and more about how we can live healthier lives by being more active and eating well. We're renewing our commitment to making the Zone a model of community wellness and we're getting everyone--from Baby College to our senior staff--involved.

Throughout this year we'll be posting simple nutrition tips that connect back to the new "My Plate" graphic which was put out last year to replace the old food pyramid. What we love about my plate is how simple and visual it is. Basically (as you can see) it's a picture of a plate filled with half fruits and vegetables and half grains and protein. Then you've got your dairy. Along with the picture of how to build a healthy plate the USDA put out some great tips for eating better that we'll also be focusing on here on the blog, on bulletin boards throughout the Zone, in the classroom and in Professional Development for our staff. You can find out exactly how many calories you need and see the full nutrition education series of tips by visiting www.choosemyplate.gov


Beyond healthy eating, physical activity is a key part of living a healthy life. This year we'll be featuring many of our programs that promote physical fitness around the Zone and also highlighting community members who are setting an example for all of us by making changes and getting active. From the Harlem Armory to the Get Fit Challenge to our Physical Education Classes at Promise Academy, we know this is one area where we've got to keep moving and pushing ourselves and each other!

So, take the stairs! Eat a piece of fruit as a snack! Celebrate those around you when you see them making healthy choices! Sign up for a cooking class, go try Zoomba at the Armory or come volunteer in our school garden. Together we can transform our community and our neighborhood into a national model for how to reverse the trend toward obesity and improve the quality of life for the next generation that we're working so hard to educate!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Good morning and welcome back to School. We hope everyone had a safe holiday season. Many of us make new years resolutions, please share yours.

The story of the four little characters, Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw, who make their way through a maze looking for the "Magical Cheese" that makes them happy. And once they find the Cheese, it seems like it will last forever-until one morning when everything changes. Who moved their Cheese? Will it come back? Or will they have to look for different Cheese, venturing onto strange paths, around corners they've never explored?

This book is part of a book club in the 5 and 6th grades for Promise. The book was funny to read and showed different personality traits. Obviously the fact that its about cheese peeked my interest even more. My favorite characters were Sniff and Scurry, because of their no fear approach and focus on the end result.

The next book is The Three Questions. Based on a story by Leo Tolstoy.

Thank you 5th and 6th graders for including the Kitchen Team to read along with you.

Window Garden Project

One of our latest projects is working on a Hydroponic Window Garden. The garden is being developed with the help of Mr. Carson (upper elem science teacher pa1) and his students. We built the frame from 1 1/2 inch pvc tubing and secured it to the window frame. Once the bottles are finished they will be installed in the frame. Each section will hold 4 grow bottles and 2 water reservoirs. The water is circulated from the reservoirs to the top bottle using an air pump. We plan to grow lettuce, beans, tomatoes, cucumbers to start.

Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, in water, without soil. Terrestrial plants may be grown with their roots in the mineral nutrient solution only or in an inert medium, such as perlite, gravel, mineral wool, or coconut husk.

We will keep you posted with the progress as we move forward.

Student Chooses Salad Du Jour: Day 2

Yesterday's "Student Salad Du Jour" was a success. Everyone's feedback has been positive and we're excited to see how this new way of getting our students more involved in their cafeteria choices and rewarding them for their outstanding work in the classroom with positive attention continues to grow.We'll share more stories and pictures aas they come in.

Today's Student Salad Du Jour was created by Jaquan S. of Promise Academy's 8th grade. Jaquan requested a Mango Salad with Grilled Shrimp for himself and his peers. This is a delicious recipe and we are always thrilled to highlight healthy ingredients like mango and shrimp! Mango is a tropical fruit which means it's not part of our normal focus on locally-grown produce here at HCZ, but for this special occassion we're making an exception! Like many fruits, mango is high in fiber and packed with antioxidants like Vitamins A, C, and E. It can be eaten green or you can eat it when it is ripe and sweet and orange. That's how we enjoyed it in our salad. It's a prefect balance to the savory shrimp and the crisp lettuce.

Thank you for sharing!
Bon Appetit!

Salad Du Jour

In working with Ms Downing, Media Specialist for Promise Academy U/E, Middle & HS,
3 high achieving 8th grade students were selected to create a "Salad for the Day" as an incentive for doing excellent in their school work. The students were responsible for picking the recipes, presenting them to Chef Andrew, and then presenting the salad to the entire 8th grade student body during lunch.

Nyashia chose todays Salad Du Jour. Her selection was Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad.

Pictures to follow.

Bon Appetit!