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Students get a tasty ride [UPDATED]
Published 11:13am Wednesday, September 19, 2012 Updated 11:42am Wednesday, September 19, 2012Over the past several years, Kennedy Secondary School has put an increasing emphasis on healthy eating and exercise, but nothing has brought physical activity and nutritious foods together like Linda Bowhall’s Family and Consumer Science class.
A bicycle in a kitchen setting might seem a bit out of place at first, but once a blender is attached to the back, it makes a little more sense.
The Fender Blender is a bicycle with a contraption on the back that lifts the rear tire off the ground and transfers the peddle power to a blender mounted behind the rider.
“It’s a fun way to combine exercise and healthy eating,” Bowhall said.
Bowhall learned about the Fender Blender from a member of the Health and Wellness Committee. She thought it would be perfect for her FACS students, so she did some research online and ordered the apparatus.
Throughout the year, sixth, seventh and eighth graders will have the opportunity to use the Fender Blender to make smoothies and hummus.
Seventh grade FACS students recently made smoothies with the Fender Blender, and they had a lot of fun with it, Bowhall said.
Each group tried a different recipe, and the rest of the class got to sample what everyone made. Some of the ingredients used were spinach, avocados, apples, strawberries, bananas, cantaloupe, carrots, pineapples and kiwis.
“It’s fun, but it’s a little tiring,” seventh grader Eric Formo said.
Formo, Marinda Hauge and Payton Boe all said they think the Fender Blender is fun and it works pretty well.
“You get your exercise and a healthy treat afterward,” Boe said.
Bowhall said the device works so well that the blender gets going faster on peddle power than it would if it were powered electrically.
“It’s a fun activity and a good way to make a connection for middle schoolers,” she said.
