Eat a Rainbow Comes to Life at Lomie Heard ES

Chefs for Kids brought the joy of fresh food and hands-on learning back to campus with another Eat a Rainbow Farmers Market—this time for first graders at Lomie Heard Elementary School.

As always, our teacher extraordinaire, Ms. Momii, kicked things off with an engaging lesson on why eating a variety of colors matters. Students learned how each color of the rainbow helps their bodies grow stronger, smarter and healthier. Next the students learned how to be super tasters as Ms. Momii guided them through a tasting of spinach, arugula and blood oranges. 

Then came the best part: the market itself. Each student grabbed a bag and “shopped” their way through colorful stations, selecting produce from every color of the rainbow to take home and share with their families.

What Was at the Market?

• Red: Red bell peppers
• Orange: Orange bell peppers
• Yellow: Acorn squash
• Green: Cabbage
• Blue/Purple: Blueberries
• White/Brown: Bosc pears

We also included blood oranges and arugula/spinach so students could recreate the tasting activity they enjoyed with their parents at home—extending the lesson beyond the classroom and into the kitchen.

Some kids were surprised to see pears listed under white/brown instead of green or red. That opened the door to another teachable moment. Bosc pears are naturally brown, and when it comes to eating the rainbow, we focus on the color of the part we eat—not just the skin. Since the flesh inside is light-colored, pears fit right into the white category.

The excitement was contagious. As students browsed the market, we overheard comments that perfectly captured the magic of the day:

• “I cannot wait to go home and try these. I’m going to try peppers and cook them.”
• “It’s like a shopping spree in school.”
• “We seriously get to eat these?”

Moments like these are why Chefs for Kids exists—to make healthy food fun, accessible and empowering for kids at a young age.

Programs like the Eat a Rainbow Farmers Market are only possible because of generous community support. Your donation helps us bring fresh produce, nutrition education and hands-on experiences to more schools and more kids across our community.

Donate today and support Chefs for Kids—together, we can continue teaching children how to eat well, live healthy and build lifelong habits that start on their plate.