Author wants kids to develop healthy eating habits – Bowling Green Daily News

Author Linda Hawkins had favorite moments when she handed out 1,040 copies of her flip book – which had “Alexander and the Great Food Fight” on one side and “Alexander and the Great Vegetable Feud” on the other – to children at Morgantown and North Butler elementary schools.

“I had them doing this hand clapping and foot stomping. One side said ‘Fruits and veggies!’ and the other side said ‘Are good for me!’,” the Morgantown woman said Thursday. “I got a picture of them putting their book in the air. That was the highlight of my day.”

The books were purchased thanks to donations from Jim Johnson, Morgantown Bank and Farm Bureau.

In “Alexander and the Great Food Fight,” Alexander seeks a snack that tastes great. His friends, the fruit in the basket on the kitchen table, want him to eat snacks that are good for his body. In “Alexander and the Great Vegetable Feud,” Alexander accidentally kicks a ball into his neighbor’s vegetable garden. As he retrieves the ball, he says he hates vegetables. Suddenly, the vegetables come to life and start debating who is the most nutritious for a strong and healthy body.

“They’re getting fruit and vegetables together,” Hawkins said.

In addition, teachers got copies of “Alexander and the Great Berry Patch,” “Who Gives a Hoot” and Alexander’s Enrichment Activities, which includes lesson plans, coloring sheets and word searches, Hawkins said.

“It’s a multitude of things they can incorporate into their learning,” she said.

Hawkins’ books have recipes such as a fruity fruit salad, veggie pasta salad, the Very Berry Slush and the Mouse and Rabbit Salad, at the end.

“Children like quirky things,” she said.

For “Alexander and the Great Berry Patch,” Hawkins worked with now-retired Western Kentucky University science professor Marvin Russell to put together a chart showing how many calories are burned during certain activities.

“It’s giving them a chart on how important it is to put physical activity with nutrition,” she said. “Children are having a good time and learning something they can carry in their lifetime.”

Hawkins has heard positive reviews from parents. There was a mother of a kindergartener who wanted to hear the books every day. One morning, the mother was making pancakes.

“He said, ‘Mom, is this the healthiest way we can eat or can we have something else?’ ” she said, laughing.

Some kids at Morgantown Elementary School were ready to put Hawkins’ stories to good use.

“I think I should start eating way healthier,” said 9-year-old Brennan Bartley, a Morgantown Elementary School student. “I eat a lot of junk food. I’m not going to eat as many Pringles.”

Chloe Cardwell, 9, a Morgantown Elementary School student, has read “Alexander and the Great Berry Patch.”

“(The books) tell you a lot of stuff about nutrients and what berries can do for you,” she said. “They’re really fun to read.”

Jett Johnson, 8, doesn’t believe the book will change his eating habits, but you never know.

“I don’t like vegetables,” he said. “Oh yeah, I do like corn.”

Hawkins, a former elementary school teacher, wants children to eat better.

“I read that this is the first generation that won’t outlive their parents. When I read that I think that’s very sad that we’ve got this in this generation,” she said. “If we can get this in their hearts and minds at an early age we can help them.”

– Daily News photo editor Miranda Pederson contributed to this report.

– Follow features reporter Alyssa Harvey on Twitter @bgdnfeatures or bgdailynews.com.

from myhealtyze http://www.myhealtyze.tk/author-wants-kids-to-develop-healthy-eating-habits-bowling-green-daily-news/