Kitchen & Garden Program

At Ungarra Primary School we promote healthy eating and encourage parents to pack healthy lunches.

As there is no canteen or shop, we provide a healthy lunch on Monday.

Students also cook their own lunch in Kitchen lesson once a week with produce from our garden.

Gardening at Ungarra Primary School

Vegetable gardens have always been a part of the learning at Ungarra Primary School.  There are many photos of the gardens over the years starting when the school moved to it’s current site over a century ago.

 In 2010 we became part of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation and since then our vegetable garden and fruit orchard has grown in size and abundance.  We currently have numerous vegetable garden beds which supply the kitchen with produce and also over 60 fruit trees.

Each week the children participate in garden lessons.  There are many jobs and the children are always keen to be involved and get their hands dirty.  They enjoy seeing the process of planting to harvesting.  They especially like trying new fruits and vegetables freshly picked, it is quite amazing what children will eat when they have grown it themselves.

The Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Program

Both classes have a Kitchen lesson each week where students get to prepare and eat the fruits of their ‘gardening’ labour.

During Kitchen lessons children learn how to use a wide variety of equipment and develop a multitude of skills such has how to use knives and appliances safely.

Kitchen is also an opportunity for them to learn more about different foods, how recipes work and the role that food plays in our bodies and our lives. It’s also enriches their vocabulary and literacy skills by learning new words and techniques.

The highlight comes at the end of each lesson when students sit down together and eat the meal that they have prepared while practicing how to set their tables and use their manners. Students are encouraged to give everything a go, and before long, even the fussiest of eaters are introduced to a whole new culinary world.