What are we eating? What pathway does food take to arrive on our plates?

Invitation to our culminating event

These are the essential questions at the core of our latest expedition. Our seventh graders investigated four food chains: industrial, industrial organic, local/sustainable and hunted/gathered/gardened. Students read The Omnivore’s Dilemma and utilized various sources to research ten essential foods produced in Maine: apples, blueberries, mushrooms, kale, potatoes, lobster, fish, eggs, milk and chicken. In addition, they visited Pineland Farms and various local grocery stores to gather information. After multiple rounds of critique and input from local food experts, students designed pocket-size food guides to publish their findings. They presented the pros and cons of the various food chains, along with fun facts, growing guides and information about local food producers. In addition to the food guide, students created massive paper mache sculptures to engage and inform the public about their findings. The work was shared at the local farmers' market and uploaded to a food database, The Maine Food Atlas.

Here are ten spotlight brochures, selected by Windsor 7 teachers for their demonstration of excellent information and professional design (typography, layout, color and imagery). Feel free to click on these images and view/download PDFs of the complete food guides. What you read may totally surprise you!

Apples

Blueberries

Chicken

Eggs

Fish

Kale

Lobster

Milk

Mushrooms

Potatoes