Students Bake Bread for Food Bank

The following is a press release from the West Chester School District.

Sixth graders in the West Chester Area School District took a hands-on approach to learning and shared their newly acquired knowledge and skills in the form of fresh-baked bread.

As part of the King Arthur Life Skills Bread Baking Program, a representative from the Vermont-based company, Paula Gray, held assemblies at all three middle schools to walk students through the process of mixing, rising, shaping, and baking bread dough. Incorporating many science, math, and art skills, the program is free to fourth- through seventh-graders and will be introduced to students in more than 200 schools nationwide this year. The required ingredients for the program were donated by King Arthur Bread Company and distributed to every district sixth grader. Each child was instructed to bake two loaves of bread; one for their family and one to donate. Students dropped off their finished products to Chester County Food Bank representatives as they arrived at school.

Paul Joyce, the district's science curriculum supervisor, spearheaded the program believing that the project contained all the elements the science department was trying to fulfill. The goals of the program - using skills the students already have, learning new skills, and giving back to the community - will help prepare the students for later projects in high school.