This is exactly what I'm saying. I saw a question (that was considered a high dificulty level question) on a game show the other night: Which of these vegetables grow in the ground? The right answers, out of several options, including tomatoes and pumpkins, were "parsnips" and "carrots." And the contestants really had to puzzle over it! That was an eye-opener. I know sometimes I've shared with other kids that potatoes grow underground, and many of them have been surprised to hear that.

To some extent I am sympathetic with the desire to not grow food and not cook food. I wasn't really very good at it myself. But at the very least we need to step back and show kids what it looks like (and how god-awful long it takes) to get a seed all the way through to its fruit that you can eat. I think that might help all of us respect our food (and the people who produce it) a bit more. A school garden is an excellent idea!!

Thank you for reading--