Nine-year-old pupil is thrilled to introduce Japanese delicacy to his classmates
School dinners may conjure up a nostalgic memory of a scoop of mash and sponge cake and custard, however nowadays, pupils are treated to a wide selection of healthy and tasty dishes from around the world on the menu every day.
Sushi fan William Youll, from St Mary Magdalen’s Catholic Primary School, which is part of Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust (BCCET), decided it would be a good new option for the school cook to add to the menu.
Empowered by the persuasive writing skills he has been learning in his English lessons, William, who is in Year 4 at the primary in Seaham, decided to pen a request to the headteacher and school cook.
Nine-year-old William wrote in his letter:
‘Dear Mrs Goodwin and Nicola,
I really like your school dinners, they are super delicious. However, I came up with a fantastic idea. Would you like to make your menu more outgoing? I think it would be splendid if we added sushi and other Japanese food to the menu.
Firstly, you can’t eat the same food over and over again. It’s good for the children to try different foods from different countries. As evidence has proved, sushi is extremely healthy, this shows that children will have a well balanced diet.
Furthermore, sushi is a super delicious and nutritious meal. There are many varieties and flavours that I’m certain all children will love.
Lastly, sushi is made of very healthy ingredients and there are many different combinations which means that you can stay safe from allergies.
I’m looking forward to your response.
Best wishes, William Youll’
To his delight, Lesley Parkin, assistant catering manager at BCCET, wrote back to him, expressing how impressed she was with his letter and his ideas for the school menu.
She added: “Your idea about including Japanese food into school is an amazing idea and I especially agree with you when you say everyone should try foods from other countries. We love doing Theme Day menus in the schools and we hope you and all your friends in school love them too, as this is a great way of trying different foods.
“You have obviously done some great research to find your information.
“What we in the catering team thought would be a good idea is for Nicola to make some sushi with your guidance and help (maybe you could give her some ideas of different kinds and ingredients to use?) and then for you to show all your classmates and explain all about it.
The catering team then worked with the Trust’s suppliers Turner Price to source ingredients so that cook Nicola could make sushi with William.
Encouraging children and young people’s thirst for knowledge and trying new things is key to Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust’s approach to teaching and learning and William and his classmates had a great time learning how to make sushi and trying it.
William said: “I was super excited because over the years I’ve thought I’d never be able to make sushi in school but I did!”
Headteacher Andrea Goodwin said: “William wrote a fantastic letter as part of his persuasive writing work in class. We are always keen to hear pupil feedback to help shape our school offer and this seemed a lovely way to promote healthy options for the children.”
For more information about St Mary Magdalen’s Catholic Primary School, visit www.stmmschool.co.uk
For more information about BCCET, visit www.bccet.org.uk
ENDS
Photo captions: William pictured with the sushi he made in school with his classmates.
William’s letter and the reply he received.
Press release issued by SASS media on behalf of Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust. For more information, contact Sarah Dale on 07814 976582.