Breakfast in the Classroom - Mart ISD

A student eats breakfast while
working on morning lessons

         86% of the students of Mart Middle school qualify for free or reduced school breakfast and lunch, according to superintendent Todd Gooden, and he says that the number of eligible students has been growing over the last few years.  In an effort to ensure that all students start their school day having eaten the most important meal of the day, Mart ISD implemented Breakfast in the Classroom two years ago.

Breakfast for the Day
Sausage Biscuits and Milk     

              During 2^nd period a pre-selected student heads to the school cafeteria to pick up a tray of breakfast items.  The teacher in each classroom distributes the food and students eat during announcements and instruction time.  “The only major issue was clean up, but we’ve since worked out an efficient system,” said principal Tawnya Nail.  Students initially cleaned their desks with spray bottles but are now given handi-wipes (the spray bottles were often not used for their intended purpose).  Nail commented that Breakfast in the Classroom has had a great impact in Mart Middle School – “Kids are happier and can focus on academics because they aren’t distracted by a rumbling stomach.  Test scores have gone up.”

a student delivers breakfast to
her classroom

           

       The breakfast program has had a significant impact in Mart's High School, which is an open campus (students may go off school grounds for meals).  The stigma that surrounds eating breakfast at school (implying a lower social standing) is shrinking.  Many of the High School students are now even sticking around for on campus lunch.