Schools

Fourth Annual Food Drive is 'Not Just a Food Drive'

The drive helps the less fortunate and teaches kids some valuable lessons.

Editor's Note: This information was submitted by Tia Clasen, communications director for the

Robbinsdale Area Schools Creative Play preschool is in the throes of planning for their fourth annual ‘Not Just a Food Drive” event to be held the week of November 14th.  Like its name implies, this food drive not only helps those who are less fortunate, but is a way to teach young children good nutrition; math skills, such as graphing, counting, and size comparison;  and the concept of sharing.

The idea for “Not Just a Food Drive” was the brainchild of Shawn Hanks, one of Creative Play’s education assistants.  The history of this food drive began with the preschool’s “special events”.  Creative Play has monthly special events, and November used to be a time when the students brought in food items to create a communal pot of soup in which all students partook.  Because of more recent health and safety laws, however, the preschool needed to come up with an alternative that did not involve cooking.  Shawn’s idea thought that “Not Just a Food Drive” would provide the opportunity for students to help those who need help, and also provide opportunities to learn about sharing with those whom the students have never met.  It will offer the opportunity to learn about nutrition and how foods can be combined to create healthy meals.  It also gives the students a chance to learn math in its real-life form, such as graphing, comparison and contrast, and counting and sorting.  The classrooms will be collecting non-perishable food items, but not before the students learn from the food. 

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This will be the first year to get barrels from the Emergency Food Drive Network.  They have agreed to donate the food to , so the donations will stay local.  Creative Play has classes at Cavanagh, New Hope, Sonnesyn and Zachary Lane schools, and all five classrooms will participate and collect as much food as possible.  Last year, Creative Play donated over 1,100 pounds of food. 

For more information, please contact Sally Ginn, Program Director for Creative Play, at 763-504-5336.

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