When it comes to nutrition, the only thing better than absorbing every nugget of information Sophia Harsh can is sharing her knowledge with young children.
That is just what she did last Friday at Tracy Area Elementary School.
Harsh, a sophomore at Tracy Area High School and president of the school’s FCCLA group, gave a presentation that day to a group of inquisitive third-graders. The kids peppered the local teenage nutrition expert with myriad questions, stumping her only once with the age-old query of if an avocado is a fruit or vegetable.
“I like taking with the third-grades, because I like getting people interested in what I’m interested in,” Harsh said. “I hope as they grow and learn about food, they’re going to be less worried about learning about it — it’s going to be a little bit easier for them to have interested in it.”
Harsh covered about everything a young child needs to know about healthy eating. She discussed the five food groups. She discussed the importance of fruits and vegetables, and fiber and protein intake.
The young students were quizzed about what they had learned and also were able to do some hands-on work. Each was given a paper plate they were to divide into five sections (each food group).
At the end, the kids received a tomato and lettuce plant they can raise at their homes. The plants were donated by the Tracy Kiwanis Club.
Harsh’s presentation is somewhat of an extension of her focus with FCCLA, where she dives into governmental nutrition. She said she’ll study either nutrition moving forward in her educational career or linguistics.
