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School Lunch Around the World

October 15, 2015 | Middle School
By Meredith Stewart

In some Indian states, efforts to serve eggs to malnourished children are a political minefield. Image by Lisa LaBracio for the animation "Power Lunch: India's Mid-Day Meal Program."

Cooks Beddo and Bimla make rotis (a wheat flat bread) at a government school in Bawani Khera village, in south central Haryana. The menu for the day is roti and a vegetable dish. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

A meal of "sweat rice" made with rice, lentils and some vegetables being served to primary school children at a government-run girls' school in the village of Dujanna, Haryana. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Marceline Bauma, 8, lives in Goma, Congo. Some of Marceline’s life in that African city is far different than life in the United States. Her home has no electricity or running water. But other parts are familiar: There’s schoolwork to do, and her help is needed around the house. Image by Kem Knapp Sawyer. Congo, 2013.

Saroj (left) and Santosh (right) carry a bowl of white rice after washing it. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Santosh, one of the two cooks at this government school in Dujana, Haryana, pours the rice into the cauldron of curried lentils and vegetables. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Every school serves a different meal each day of the week. The menu for the day is khichdi, a dish made with rice, lentils and vegetables. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Santosh (left) and Suman (right), the two school cooks, serve the khichdi to girls during lunch time. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Girls eating their lunch in the school’s hallway. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Cooks Beddo and Bimla make rotis (a wheat flat bread) at a government school in a village called Paposa, in south central Haryana. The menu for the day is roti and a vegetable dish. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

The following day, children at the same school get rice and kadhi, a curry made with onions, garlic, yogurt and fritters made with chick pea flour. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

Children devouring the kadhi and rice. Image by Rhitu Chatterjee. India, 2014.

This lesson is written as a series of notes for the facilitator.

Educator Notes: 

In this lesson, students will explore controversy about India's midday meal program and consider how school lunches around the world compare to their own experiences.

Warm-up:

Ask students to outline a typical lunchroom at their school - drawings preferably.

Have students predict what a lunchroom in another country might look like.

Introducing the Lesson:

Watch Resource 1 together as a class going through a “I Noticed… I wonder… What If?” activity.

Resource 1: Power Lunch: India's Mid-day Meal Program

    As you watch the video, write down:

  1. Three things that you noticed
  2. Three things that you wonder
  3. Three ‘what if’ statements.

Discuss with partners, then as a whole group.

Students work through Resources 2-4 independently, collecting the information outlined in the articles.

Resource 2: A Free Meal: Inside India's School Lunch Program

  1. Describe the challenges that the midday meal program faces.
  2. Describe the reporter’s experience of visiting a school and community to discuss the midday meal program.

Resource 3: India's Free School Lunches Can Fight — or Reinforce — Caste Discrimination in India

  1. What is the caste system?
  2. How does the lingering effect of the caste system impact the midday meal program?
  3. In the most challenging locations, how are dalit children treated in the midday meal program?

Resources 4: India: Here’s Why Kids—and Parents—Love the Country's School Lunch Program

  1. Describe what a normal morning meal is like in your life.
  2. Compare and contrast the evening meal that you experience with the one described by Mohit.
  3. Why is India unsure about the impact of the midday meal on overall child health?
  4. What was one way that India knew that its program was effective?
  5. Which students have begun to attend school more regularly after the start of the midday meal program?

Ask students to read "In far-away Congo, a girl’s life is focused on school and family" and then complete a Venn diagram graphic organizer that compares and contrasts the experience of a typical child in India, the child in this article, and the individual student’s experience.

Extensions:

  1. Students create a PSA style video/cartoon/audio clip about how important child nutrition is to their education.
  2. Students write a letter to the editor explaining an opinion they formed after reading these resources.
  3. Students consider patterns they see in these photos of different lunches from around the world.

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