The MacGregor and Rodriguez Elementary Summer Camps have Kids Cooking and Gardening!

Not only did these fourth and fifth grade groups continue to hone their cooking and gardening skills, over the course of four weeks, they each focused on a special project.

The Food Marketing Group at MacGregor researched, developed, tested, created, packaged and marketed their own healthy food product. Over the course of the program the children learned all about how food is marketed to them. Then they turned the tables to apply their newly acquired skills to the development of a healthy packaged food using produce from their 1/4 acre Recipe Garden. What was the final product? Rainbow Ribbons, brightly colored handmade fettuccini noodles created by adding beets, spinach and basil, and other garden fresh goodies to their basic homemade pasta recipe.

The Jr. Master Gardener Group at MacGregor worked to get their full accreditation

and completed all of the projects necessary to receive the Golden Ray recognition in garden nutrition. They also operated a Farmers Market, harvested food for snacks and "sold" produce to the Marketing Class to use in their pasta.

The class at Rodriguez combined time in the gardens and kitchen to study the traditions of a Three Sisters Garden and produce a Native American Harvest Festival that celebrated the culture of food.