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From cinnamon roll to honour roll: How a healthy breakfast propels students to the top of the class
December 1, 2009 mikecrisolago
How We Learn
Fresh Start
The first rule of Breakfast Club: everyone talks about Breakfast Club. Precisely why sixteen-year-old Malcolm Wyllie stands over a grill in the family studies kitchen at George Harvey Collegiate Institute. He’s palming a fresh loaf of whole wheat bread.
“Sometimes I go through eight of these in a day,” he said.
In all, three grills operate, churning out grilled-cheese sandwiches as fast as possible. Behind Malcolm, students peel and slice apples and prepare juice, stack plates and organize cutlery. Then, the first voices are heard down the corridor leading to the room.
Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009 stands as the busiest day in the nine-year history of the George Harvey breakfast club. In total, 140 students passed through the kitchen.
Claire White and Cavell Hart, program co-ordinators with Food Share – part of Toronto Partners for Student Nutrition – help provide schools with the tools to start successful breakfast programs. They believe that a nutritious breakfast is one of the keys to helping students succeed academically.
“We know that when kids get something nutritious to eat in the morning they’re more likely to show up. Their grades go up. They’re better behaved,” Hart said.
Heidi Lee, a child and youth worker at James Cardinal McGuigan Catholic Secondary School, helped found the Breakfast Club there. She says that some teachers initially opposed it but, after seeing the results, have changed their minds.
“(Educators) should all be thinking outside the box,” Lee said. “And it’s important because if everybody’s on board, then the kids will do better in school.”
After six years, the James Cardinal McGuigan Breakfast Club boasts a proven track record for student academic success. Cathy Cimini, a teacher at McGuigan and one of the co-founders, says a nutritious breakfast makes a noticeable difference when it comes to a student’s in-class performance.
“They’re behaved and just happier in general,” Cimini said. “They pay more attention and they’re less apt to cause trouble or fall asleep.”
“He likes it! Mikey likes it!”
The breakfast programs at both George Harvey and McGuigan follow the Canada Food Guide, which focuses on dairy, fruits, vegetables and grains in meals designed to help students perform better in school.
“A lot of kids’ diets are very high in salt and added sugar and fat and processed food and we’re really trying to move away from that,” White said.
“We know that protein and fruit and dairy fills them up and helps them concentrate better,” Cimini said.
“Having a proper amount of grains in a day really does help students to learn better,” Hart noted. “It has building blocks in it that make learning easier for kids as they’re growing.”
Using this information as a base, George Harvey and McGuigan have found ways to not only launch, but grow successful breakfast programs.
For 50 cents, students can enjoy a rotating menu of hot breakfasts such as eggs, pancakes, waffles and grilled cheese sandwiches. Fruit, granola bars, juice and milk are always available. And the statistics show the approach is working.
At McGuigan, Lee has had to move to multiple venues within the school to accommodate the growing number of students. And at George Harvey, 2001-2002 records show that 1,507 breakfasts were served that school year. In the 2008-2009 school year: 13,472.
The results are in….
For the last two years, Heidi Lee has conducted an experiment during McGuigan’s annual literacy test: she feeds students involved a free nutritious breakfast.
“The literacy scores have doubled,” Lee said. “The marks went up and the kids talked about how good they felt because their stomachs were full and they were able to concentrate harder on their work.”
And that’s not all. Winnie Gaisie, a Grade 12 student at McGuigan, says a nutritious breakfast made a significant difference in her academic standing.
“In Grade 9 I got honours (75 per cent average) and in Grade 11 I got first class (85 per cent),” Gaisie said. “I’m more alert. When I come early I have time to go over my homework.”
Elizabeth Ojo, another Grade 12 student at McGuigan, says her marks also increased.
“Before, if I didn’t eat breakfast, I didn’t hear anything (in class),” Ojo said. “But after I started taking the school breakfast I could talk in class. I could do activities.”
Lee says teachers also take part in the Breakfast Club.
“The kids come up to the teachers and ask them for help,” Lee said. “Sometimes one will get up and help them with their work and finish their breakfast with them.”
And the results aren’t confined to secondary schools. At Earl Haig elementary school, parent Yasmin Karim says she’s noticed a significant change in her children since they began participating in the school’s healthy lunch program.
“I really find it makes a big difference,” Karim said. “If you’ve got kids who aren’t thinking about being hungry, they’re just calmer, they’re more receptive and they can stay focused.”
Moving forward
“These programs level the playing field for the students,” White said. “If everyone’s getting the same healthy meal they’re on much more even ground to learn.”
Those who have a breakfast program know the results speak for themselves. But some, like Ross Cappellacci, chaplain at Cardinal McGuigan, said many kids come to school without having eaten, sometimes for over a day, which results in needless disciplinary issues and academic underachievement.
“What’s the impact of a child, especially in the morning, getting something in their stomach?” Cappellacci said. “It’s invaluable.”
And the benefits don’t end at graduation. Francis Acheampong, a McGuigan graduate and first year Seneca student said the habits he learned in the Breakfast Club have carried over in the transition to post-secondary education.
“It’s really helped me. My school is far, so I have to wake up early and prepare my food. So it gives me a head start,” Acheampong said.
As a result of the volunteer hours Acheampong accumulated by working at the Breakfast Club, he received two college scholarships – just one of the many ripple effects of the program that Lee and Cimini are so proud of.
“I’m a firm believer that if you feed these kids, they can concentrate better,” Lee said. “And I’m pretty sure that if I decide next year for the literacy test not to give them a snack, the scores will dip.”
Then, with a laugh, Lee added: “We like to think it’s the food.”
“And the teachers,” Cimini said with a chuckle. “They have something to do with it too.”
