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Student power highlighted Cesar Chavez Day celebrations at Malcolm X Elementary School Friday. 

While youth activists across California rallied to close the state’s public schools to honor Chavez’s 81st birthday, Berkeley Unified marked the event through a day of learning. 

Third, fourth and fifth graders at Malcolm X pedaled away furiously on a bicycle-powered blender to whip up smoothies during their cooking and gardening class Friday before going on spring break on March 31 (Monday), when Chavez’s birthday was observed throughout the state. 

“Declaring a holiday on Cesar Chavez’s birthday would be counterproductive,” said district spokesperson Mark Coplan. 

“They wouldn’t be learning anything at all. The Berkeley Board of Education passed a resolution four years ago to declare it an in-school holiday as opposed to a holiday. It’s a day of learning and teaches our kids to reflect on our heroes. That’s more in keeping with the spirit of Cesar Chavez.” 

While students at Malcolm X learned about alternate energy, their peers at Thousand Oaks and John Muir Elementary schools held assemblies and dressed up as Chavez, Fred Ross and Dolores Huarte. 

But the biggest excitement was centered around the Byerly Bicycle Blender (www.bikeblender.com) at Malcolm X which utilizes the Xtracycle sport utility bicycle as its base. 

Used nationwide by public schools and corporations such as Clif Bar and Starbucks, the bike blender is designed to spin blender blades at over 10,000 rpm (revolutions per minute) which is equivalent to a household electric blender. 

“It’s an excellent way to educate kids about alternate ways to power a blender without electricity,” said Malcolm X gardening teacher Rivka Mason who received the American Institute For Public Service Jefferson Award last year. 

“It teaches them people power. When you peddle, the blender goes round and round. The faster you peddle, the faster the blade spins. It’s a form of service learning. Students get to reflect on what they are being taught in the classroom.” 

Mason usually hands out strawberry plants to students on Cesar Chavez Day every year, but a last minute ordering glitch called for a change of plans last week. 

As the students emptied frozen strawberries, apple sauce and cranberry nectar into the blender pitcher, Mason put in a word of caution. 

“Hands off the blender when it’s spinning,” she said. “We don’t want it to blow up on our face.” 

As the fifth graders lined up to take turns on the shiny red bike their excitement knew no bounds. 

“It’s so cool, I can’t believe we are using our hands and feet to make our own food,” said Anala Griffin, a fifth grader. 

“It’s a bit like Cesar Chavez. I learned in class that he worked on a farm. But it’s sad that he didn’t get paid much.” 

Her classmate Lydia Raag said it would be fun to have one in her house. 

“We are just trying to connect kids to what they eat,” said Ariana, an AmeriCorp volunteer who was helping Mason that afternoon. 

“There are so many possibilities. Some of them are learning about human energy for the first time.”