Engage & Make a Change

Students learn how to assess their environment, select an issue they want to address, research the issue, ask the community how they feel about the issues, and create an action plan to address these issues.

This year, an Eat Right Philly staff member collaborated with an 8th grade English class at Martha Washington Elementary School. The teacher was thrilled to hear how YPAR aligned with what the class was learning and jumped on the opportunity to work together. With the YPAR initiative, the class works on activities together as a team, to build teamwork and cooperation. While the class will be working on their project throughout the month of May, they have enjoyed a variety of activities designed to assess their school, decide on an issue to tackle, research alternative options and plan how to resolve that issue. Over the next weeks, the students will be refining their plan and work on implementing it with administrative approval. The YPAR initiative has shown students that they share common thoughts on issues in their environment. Students have also learned to voice their concerns in constructive ways while learning about persuasive writing. The classroom teacher noted that students are also learning to develop a hypothesis and conduct research; vital skills that they will need as they begin high school.

To learn more about the YPAR initiative and begin planning for next year, contact your EAT RIGHT PHILLY nutrition coordinator. Together, we can determine how the YPAR initiative can fit into your lesson plans for the upcoming school year!