Our Food a Healthy Serving of Science and Poems
Written by Grace Lin and Ranida T. McKneally and Illustrated by Grace Zong
Bibliography:
Lin, G., McKneally, R., & Zong, G. (2018). Our food: A healthy serving of Science and Poems. Charlesbridge.
Summary:
Our Food is a poetry book full of food-related haikus. Each haiku is paired with the science behind the foods we eat and explains their colors, tastes, and nutrients. The end of the book also houses a glossary that expands on unfamiliar terms and provides extra definition for common terms like fruit and vegetable.
Analysis:
I enjoy the mix of factual prose with the food-filled haikus, but this book leans more to the facts than it does the poetry. Each page has one of each, but the prose is very dense and could be information overload at times, especially with so many scientific terms thrown in. However, the information is explained at a level that a younger audience could definitely absorb it over time; I just wouldn't recommend trying to teach it all in one sitting. This book could be used over a period of time — a week or so — to teach about the science of food as well as the poetry form of haikus. The haikus themselves are fun and lighthearted. Each of which balances with the factoids and illustrations well.
The illustrations done by Grace Zong are playful and cartoony, and focus on highlighting the meaning of the haikus rather than just providing a visual for the facts, but there are still some graphics included that give the reader more information for the science side of the page, like a diagram of the inside of a grain.
Excerpt:
Why are fruits so colorful?
Fruits turn softer, sweeter, and brighter as the ripen. The bright colors and sweet taste attract fruit-eating animals such a birds and squirrels. This is important for plants because these animals spread seeds. The seeds that drop as the animal eats—or that come out in the animal's poop later—can grow into new plants.
The color of a fruit gives us a clue to the nutrition in it. For example, orange fruits like apricots and cantaloupes are rich in beta-carotene, an orange pigment made by plants. You body changes beta-carotene to vitamin A. This vitamin keeps your skin, eyes, and other body parts working the way they should. So choosing and snacking on fruits in a rainbow of colors is a brilliant way to keep your body healthy.
Red plums high above.
Red strawberries down below.
Red stains on my mouth!
Activity Idea:
For younger kids, create a paper rainbow and let them draw fruits, by name or shape, on the rainbow to match their color. For example, yellow could have bananas and lemons; red could have apples, cherries, and strawberries; and green could have pears, apples, and kiwis. If you're in a public library or a space with a garden area, you can have older kids help plant some fruits and vegetables while telling them how to water and take care of them. This can be a repeat program where they can come back to tend to their own plants, or wait until it's harvest time and have them help pick the fruits and vegetables to take home with them.
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