Children learn best when they are actively involved, doing something. Gardening is a great way to include children in experiential learning that promotes hands-on activities in an outdoor classroom.

This year, our Okaloosa County Master Gardener volunteers, 4-H and the Family Nutrition Program have teamed up to reach several local schools and provide the expertise and resources to use gardening and teach youths about science, biology and nutrition.

At Bob Sikes Elementary School, teams built six raised beds so that each fourth-grade class could plan and prepare, and then care for their class garden. The enthusiasm is evident each week as youths get to plant, weed and water plants.

Lessons for the week center on science and biology; students learn how plants grow, and receive education on nutrients needed for plants and problems like good bugs and bad bugs.

As students learn and take care of their garden, nutrition lessons center on vegetables they will soon harvest. Tasting sessions and basic nutrition are taught in hands-on activities that allow students to experience new food and learn about healthy eating.

Introducing children to gardening lets them see where their food comes from, and helps them understand the importance of eating whole foods locally grown and harvested.

Teachers who participate also use the garden as a place for other enrichment activities like sitting in the garden and writing a paper or using the ambience to create artwork.

If you have children at home and want to try an easy planting activity, grow potatoes in a laundry basket or other large container.

You will need one laundry basket, which can be purchased at a local dollar store.

Here’s what to do:

• Fill the baskets with about 2 inches of soil and compost.
• Put two to three seed potatoes into each basket. Cut each potato into three pieces with two to three eyes each. Only use certified seed potatoes. Certification ensures that the seed tubers are free of disease. You can buy certified seed from local garden centers.
• Cover the potato pieces with soil just barely to the top. Keep doing this until you have half the basket full of growing potatoes and soil.
• As the potatoes grow, add soil to the basket to keep the tops just above the soil; this simulates "hilling" the potatoes in a garden.
• Water the basket slowly; holes on the sides can make it challenging if you get in a hurry.

Potatoes are ready within 100-110 days, depending on the variety. One of the most common varieties, Red Pontiac, can be found locally.

Pamela H. Allen is an agent at the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension office in Crestview.

Children can help prepare these simple recipes in the kitchen featuring commonly grown vegetables.

Crispy Potato Wedges

Ingredients

• 4 potatoes, scrubbed clean
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions

• Cut potatoes into wedges by cutting lengthwise in half then slice each half into three slices.
• Place the salt, garlic powder, paprika and black pepper in a mixing bowl. Add potatoes and toss them in the spices. Next, add the olive oil to the bowl and toss until potatoes are coated.
• Place coated potato wedges so they are in a single layer on a nonstick baking pan.
• Bake at 450 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes until the potatoes are cooked through, browned and crispy.
• While potatoes bake, chop the parsley and grate the parmesan cheese. Place both into a large mixing bowl.
• After baking and while still hot, toss potato wedges in the mixing bowl with parsley and cheese.

Serves 4–6.

Raw Veggies with Yogurt Dip

Ingredients

• 1 cup nonfat plain yogurt
• 1 package ranch dressing
• Veggies (may use any raw vegetable grown in the garden)
• Carrots
• Broccoli
• Green or red bell peppers
• Cucumbers — washed and thinly sliced

Directions

• Wash hands and surfaces.
• Wash vegetables using a vegetable brush. Pat dry and cut vegetables into bite-size pieces.
• Mix yogurt with ranch dressing mix in a medium bowl.
• Place vegetables and dip on a tray and enjoy.
• Immediately refrigerate leftovers.

Serves 6–8.

Do try this at home

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: School gardening promotes healthy eating

Medical insurance is getting lots of attention right now in the media, and there are many viewpoints.

I shared some of mine a few weeks ago about both doctors and hospitals posting their prices for service. I think a free-market fee for services would work in many instances, with a high-deductible insurance plan for a catastrophic occurrence such as cancer.

I enjoyed the article in the Crestview News Bulletin about Dr. J.D. Bailey opening a medical practice here in Crestview, where one pays a membership fee and belongs to this practice.

Dr. Bailey is limiting the number of patients, which should be great for his patients. I love innovative solutions, and this is a great idea. One would have access to medical care when it is needed, and wouldn't have to wait for the insurance company to approve it or wait weeks for an appointment.

The other end of the fee-for-services spectrum is the idea that government should provide insurance for everyone, a system that is financially and logistically unworkable.

An insurance card doesn't mean one will have access to health care, especially if we don't dramatically increase medical professionals.

We have a shortage of medical professionals now, and as more doctors and nurses are retiring, they aren't necessarily being replaced.

Americans, as a nation, are kind, and although we would like to see those with pre-existing conditions get insurance for the same cost as those who are healthy, financially, it can't work.

Would a car insurance company insure a safe, accident-free driver for the same price as a driver that has had three or four accidents?

No, so we need to use our financial sense, not just our emotions.

Another big issue is people buying insurance after they are sick. Would you try to buy auto insurance after you had an accident and expect the insurance to pay for a brand, new car?

We, as consumers, need to take responsibility for our health, not wait until we are ill to exercise and eat right.

We need to allow families to choose insurance or not and allow them to make their own health care decisions, even if we disagree with their decision.

This is what freedom is all about.

Janice Lynn Crose, a former accountant, lives in Crestview with her husband, Jim; her two rescue collies, Shane and Jasmine; and two cats, Kathryn and Prince Valiant.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: What health insurance can — and can't — buy

The upcoming book, "Mississippi Blood," by Greg Iles, will soon be available for check-out at the Crestview Public Library.

In this last installment of the Natchez Burning Trilogy, the story of Penn Cage and his father are concluded, according to Publishers Weekly. 

"Both unwieldy and tightly controlled, bestseller Iles' terrific conclusion to his 'Natchez Burning' trilogy (after 2015's 'The Bone Tree') is a sweeping story that remains intimate," Publishers Weekly states.

"The Double Eagles, a savage KKK splinter group, have declared a personal war on Penn Cage, a former prosecutor who's now the mayor of Natchez, Miss., necessitating 24-hour security protection for him and his family. The toxic bigotry escalates as Penn's father, Tom, once a respected physician, goes on trial for the murder of his former nurse and one-time lover, Viola Turner, an African-American who was suffering from terminal cancer.

"Penn teams with Serenity Butler, a famous black author who plans to write about Tom's case. Together, they look into the secrets of the Cage family, the Double Eagles, and the South. Though a side plot about J.F.K.'s assassination stretches credibility, relentless pacing keeps the story churning, with unexpected brutality erupting on nearly every page. The trial scenes are among the most exciting ever written in the genre," Publishers Weekly states.

Be sure to read "Natchez Burning" and "The Bone Tree" first.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Greg Iles book concludes his Natchez Burning trilogy

In 2014, the average tax refund was about $2,700. If you got that much this year, what would you do with it?

You can probably think of a lot of things you might do with $2,700. You might decide to splurge and buy some big-ticket item you’ve been eyeing, or you could use the money to pay down some bills, which might be a good idea, especially if it helps improve your cash flow. As an alternative, though, you might want to consider investing the money.

You might not think $2,700 would make that big a difference to your investment portfolio, but if you invested that $2,700 in a tax-advantaged account, such as an IRA, and you left the money alone, what might you earn? After 30 years, your $2,700 would have grown to more than $20,500, assuming no further contributions and a hypothetical 7 percent annual return. That’s not a fortune, of course, but it would help boost your retirement savings somewhat — and since it originated from a tax refund, it was accumulated pretty effortlessly from your point of view.

Now suppose you put in the same amount — $2,700 — to your IRA each year for 30 years. Again assuming that same hypothetical 7 percent annual return, your money would have grown to more than $272,000. And that amount can indeed make a rather big difference in your retirement lifestyle.

Keep in mind that you’d eventually have to pay taxes on that $272,000 if you had been investing in a traditional IRA, which is tax-deferred but not tax-free. It is possible, however, that if you start taking withdrawals when you retire, you’ll be in a lower tax bracket.

If you meet the income guidelines for contributing to a Roth IRA, though, you could avoid the tax issue altogether on your $272,000. That’s because Roth IRA earnings grow tax-free, provided you don’t start withdrawals until you’re 59½ and you’ve had your account for at least five years.

Thus far, we’ve only talked about putting your tax refund to work in your IRA — which, as we’ve seen, can be a very good idea. But suppose you’ve already developed the excellent habit of “maxing out” on your IRA each year by contributing a set amount each month? You can currently only put in up to $5,500 per year to your IRA, or $6,500 if you’re 50 or older. So you could fully fund your IRA by putting in about $458 per month (or $541 per month if you’re 50 or older). Those amounts are not unreasonable, especially as you move deeper into your career and your salary increases. If you do reach these limits each month, what could you do with your tax refund?

You can start by looking closely at your portfolio to see if any gaps exist. Could you, for example, use your tax refund to further diversify your holdings? While diversification can’t guarantee profits or prevent losses, it can reduce the impact of volatility on your portfolio — and the less you feel the effects of volatility, the more likely you may be to stick with your long-term strategy rather than overreacting to short-term price drops.

So when Uncle Sam sends you that refund, consider investing it one way or another. You’ll be putting it to good use.

Edward Jones wrote this article for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Put your tax refund to work