Green Team Gazette Season 3, Issue 3 Nov. 2010

1. Top 5 Must-See Food DVD’s
All of these shows should be mandatory viewing for all
adults—especially educators!! You can find the first four
through www.netflix.com (several of which you can watch
instantly). Parts of these movies might be worth showing to
your classroom, given your students’ age. (Some have some
language or some scenes that might be harsh for young
eyes, so most certainly preview!)
1. Food, Inc. (2008)
2. Super-Size Me (2004)
3. King Corn (2007)
4. Killer at Large: Why
Obesity is America’s
Greatest Threat (2008)
5. Jamie Oliver’s Food
Revolution (this 2009 series can be found on
www.hulu.com or www.abc.com)
Fish Free Fridays
Unfortunately ocean toxins are making
certain fish fall in the “dangerous food” category. Use the
Plastiki fish info pages to give your students an opportunity
to “read for information” to learn why some fish can be
harmful (http://www.theplastiki.com/fishfreefriday/).
Then invite them to either use the information to write
persuasive/informative paragraphs or speeches. You also
could turn the info into a Jeopardy style game!
The Dirty Dozen Grocery Grid
The “dirty dozen” has nothing to do with Dirty Harry.
Rather, it has to do with the 12 fruits and vegetables that
are best to buy organically if you are picking and chosing
where to go organic in your grocery quest. It is the food in
this list that tend to hold a higher level reason of chemicals
(both pesticides & herbicides) than other grown edibles (as
found at http://organic.lovetoknow.com/Dirty_Dozen_Organic_Foods).
Introduce your students to the “dirty dozen” by giving each
student a copy of page 2 of the Green Team Gazette. After
reading the intro and the directions, invite your students to
hunt for the 12 coordinates at the bottom of the page to
find the 12 foods on the grid.
The Green Team Gazette
Volume 3, Issue 3, page 1 November 2010
Harvest Time
The autumn brings to mind harvest
time and Thanksgiving. It is the time
we start to think about food,friends,
fellowship, and all the things for which we are thankful.
One thing most certainly to be thankful for is your
health. Especially since Thanksgiving opens up a 6+ week
season of parties, feasts, & often over-indulgence. It
doesn’t help that portion sizes in America are a lot
larger than they were in “days gone by.” According to
the CDC (the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention),
in 2002 the average American man weighed 191 pounds
(up from 166.3 lbs in 1960) and the average female
weighed 164.3 pounds (up from 1960’s 140.2 pounds).
The same holds true for kids:
A good place to start your discussion in a classroom is to
show this chart and invite your students to start doing
the math. Then, bounce from there into a conversation
as to why Americans apparently are growing!!
GTG Blog Archives
A visit to the Green Team Gazette webpage and a
click on “food” in the “GTG Cloud Labels” will give you a
bundle of extra food/nutrition resources (http://green-
teamgazette.blogspot.com/search/label/food).
The Green Team Gazette is a publication
co-sponsored by the founders of CynerGreen
CGKidz, and Eagle Cove School (formerly
“Gibson Island Country School”), a Green
School in Pasadena, Maryland. Our mission is
to educate and share ways to “go green”—both big & small--
and be environ-mentally-proactive at home, in school, and
beyond. It is written by Vicki Dabrowka, 3rd grade teacher
& co-Green Team Leader at Eagle Cove School. To learn
more visit www.cynergreen.com, www.cgkidz.com, and
www.eaglecoveschool.org. You can also follow us at
http://greenteamgazette.blogspot.com/ or find us at “Green
Team Gazette” on Facebook.
Please print on recycled paper. Copyright © 2010 Vicki Dabrowka
Weight 1960s 2002 2010
10 yr old boy 74.2 lbs nearly 85 lbs No info
yet…but odds
are, it’s
trending up!
10 yr old girl 77.4 lbs nearly 88 lbs
15 yr old boy 135.5 lbs 150.3 lbs
15 yr old girl 124.2 lbs 134.4 lbs
The Dirty Dozen Grocery Grid: The Answers
Apples C1 Cherries E5 Grapes A4 Peaches F2
Celery A6 Bell peppers B2 Lettuce F6 Pears D2
Potatoes E7 Strawberries C6 Spinach D4 Nectarines B7

2. The “Dirty Dozen” Grocery Grid
Use the coordinates below to find the 12 foods that you should always try to
buy organic when you have the choice. Can you find the “Dirty Dozen.”
7
bananas nectarines avocado onion potatoes turnips
6
celery green beans strawberries tomatoes pumpkin lettuce
5
pineapple limes eggplant garlic cherries radishes
4
grapes cabbage blueberries spinach corn cucumber
3
carrots artichoke watermelon cantaloupe broccoli zucchini
2
plums bell peppers lemons pears cauliflower peaches
1
kiw mushrooms apples raspberries honeydew asparagus
A B C D E F
C1 _________________ E5 _________________ A4 __________________
F2 _________________ B7 __________________ D2 __________________
F6 _________________ C6 __________________
A6 ________________ E7 __________________
D4__________________ B2 __________________
retain a higher level of pesticides and herbicides used by farmers than other types of produce. Let's take a closer look,
The Green Team Gazette
Volume 3, Issue 3 , page 2 November 2010
Copyright © 2010 Vicki Dabrowka