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<br />! <br /> <br />cheese quesadillas, red beans and rice, hummus and vegetarian chili, <br />and voted on their favorites. (Quesadillas won, hummus lost.) <br /> <br />"The voting alone encourages kids to try the item," says Ms. <br />McLarney. "Kids wanted the chance to have their voice heard so they <br />would try a food just for the chance to put a little piece of paper <br />in a box." <br /> <br />Not every effort succeeded. The food-service department held a <br />contest seeking healthy recipes from parents, and the winner was a <br />salad that included chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, low-fat cheese and <br />beans. It tasted good to contest judges, but didn't draw eaters when <br />placed in large bowls in the cafeteria. The children still grumble <br />about the switch from french fries to potato wedges. <br /> <br />The school district even lost a little money for a while when it <br />eliminated chips, cookies, ice cream and sports drinks from the snack <br />foods sold at lunch. Given the choice of milk or juice (or sherbet <br />once a week), many kids opted to buy nothing. But then a funny thing <br />happened, says Ms. McLarney: Forced to go without a fatty or sugar- <br />rich snack, more children and teachers started buying the healthy <br />lunch food. The schools are selling twice as much fruit in their <br />lunchrooms as they did five years ago, she says. <br /> <br />"Everyone was unhappy," concedes Ms. McLarney. "But we just decided <br />it was in everybody's best interest. Kids have $1.80 in their pocket <br />and they're choosing between a sundae, Powerade and a bag of chips or <br />a salad or sandwich, what do you think they'll pick?" <br /> <br />Outside of the cafeteria, even art teachers got into the act by <br />encouraging children to paint fruits and vegetables. The Tufts team <br />created an after-school curriculum that included yoga, dance and soccer. <br /> <br />Ruth Grossman, a sixth-grader at Benjamin G. Brown School, says her <br />teacher used to hand out candy bars as a reward for doing well. Now, <br />the teacher hands out passes that allow children to skip homework or <br />a test question. Ruth says she used to snack on potato chips, but has <br />switched mostly to fruit. She also started taking a fitness class, <br />and her mother took up rowing. "I learned that eating the right foods <br />helps you do things," says Ruth. "Eating a good meal before a test <br />helps you focus better and last longer." <br /> <br />Celia Taylor, a second-grade teacher at Arthur D. Healey Elementary <br />School, said she started taking yoga classes after teaching the Shape <br />Up curriculum. And the lessons prompted her to change snack time in <br />her classrooms. In the past, children brought whatever snack they <br />wanted. Now the class has a group snack, brought in by parents and <br />selected from a list of healthy options like cheese and crackers or <br />fruit. <br /> <br />Significant Difference <br />