Old Lyme — When an instructor from a program that teaches children how to make bread for those in need asked a room full of students at Mile Creek School on Wednesday morning if hunger is a big issue in their community and state, the students replied "yes."

"Yes, it's a big issue in our country," said Amy Driscoll, instructor for King Arthur Flour's Bake For Good: Kids program. "One out of every five kids in America goes to bed at night not knowing where their next meal is going to come from."

But she told students the good news is that they can do something about it, by making nutritious homemade bread to share with people in need.

King Arthur Flour, a Vermont-based company, was visiting Mile Creek School and Lyme Consolidated School on Wednesday to teach fourth- and fifth-grade students how to bake bread for others during demonstrations that incorporated math and science lessons.

The students were given a recipe booklet and a baking kit to take home. The students will then bring a loaf of bread or rolls that they made to school on Monday to donate to St. Vincent de Paul Place in Norwich, and keep the rest of their baking — whether it's bread or pizza or cinnamon rolls — at home for their family.

During the 50-minute demonstration at Mile Creek School, Driscoll, along with students Huck Griswold, 11, and Eve Videll, 10, stood wearing aprons at a table set up with baking ingredients at the front of the room and showed how to make bread, as students in the audience listened, answered questions and laughed at jokes.

Driscoll taught the students about good baking practices — such as reading the recipe twice before starting — and delved into the scientific component of baking.

She explained to students that baker's yeast is a single-cell organism that is alive but dormant. She asked students what "dormant" means. After a student answered that it means "in a very deep sleep," Driscoll said the first part of the recipe is about "waking the yeast up" by creating an environment with warmth, moisture and food.

Later in the demonstration, students applauded as Huck showed how to toss pizza dough in the air, and Eve showed how to braid the bread.

The students said they enjoyed learning to make bread and help others.

"I think it's great that we're making bread for other people, because there are other people that don't have enough food to eat, so I think it's a great idea to be making bread for them," Eve said.

Huck also said it's nice to make bread for other people that don't have enough food. He said it was fun making bread for the first time, and he learned during the demonstration that it takes patience and time to make the bread right.

"You have to go step by step," he said.

King Arthur has brought the free program to 46 states and annually reaches about 30,000 to 35,000 students in about 180 schools, said Driscoll. The company's vision is "to build community through baking, so this is one way we are hoping to teach and inspire young bakers and also help them build community by being with their family, understanding the needs in their community and that they have the power to do something about a very serious social issue," she said.

The parent-teacher organizations of Mile Creek and Lyme Consolidated brought the free program to the schools, said Jess Videll, a parent and PTO member who helped organize the event. Videll said she loved that Driscoll used real terms to explain concepts during the demonstration and also showed that baking can be fun. She added that it's important for students to give back.

"I believe that bread-making is a lost art, so it was a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate this to the students, while also incorporating valuable lessons in science, math and even citizenship, given that the children will be donating the bread they make to those in need," Mile Creek Principal Patricia Downes said.

k.drelich@theday.com