Kids’ books and videos to tackle the topic of food insecurity
The topics of food insecurity, poverty and unaffordability are popping up more and more in news headlines and dinner-table conversations. If you’re looking for ways to broach these important subjects with your kids, especially during the academic pause of March Break, check out these books and video recommendations below.
Each one was hand-selected for the CBC School Challenge, a resource developed by the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario in collaboration with CBC, Daily Bread Food Bank and Feed Ontario for the CBC campaign Make the Season Kind.
Watch: Equity, Equality and Social Justice
Conversation starters for after you watch the video together:
In the video, how do the boxes work to help each person? If the boxes were only there for one day, why would that be a problem?
Charity can be similar to equality, where we are trying to find a box every time somebody needs one. Justice is similar to achieving equity and social justice by creating permanent solutions where the need for boxes is gone. Why is it important to create changes so that people experiencing hunger don’t just rely on others to share with them?
Read: Maddi’s Fridge by Lois Brandt
Conversation starters for after you read the book together:
This book tells us, “The more we talk about empty refrigerators, the fewer there will be.” What do you think that means? Why is this true? How can you help spread the message?
Why is it important that Maddi’s friend didn’t just give her a snack every day?
Read: Lulu and the Hunger Monster by Erik Talkin
Conversation starters for after you read the book together:
Why did Lulu hold back from telling her friend and Mr. Abidi about her hunger? Why do you think she was embarrassed? What does being embarrassed feel like? What makes you feel better?
What adults can you think of who might be able to help solve problems?
What could your school do to help make sure that there are less people going hungry every day?
What does it mean that everyone should have access to food?
Are you and your family interested in doing more to fight hunger in Toronto? Consider leading a school food drive (with your school’s consent) for Purolator’s Fill a Red Bag School Challenge this spring. The school that donates the most pounds of food per student will win an afternoon with an ice cream truck at their school! Get full details and register.
