According to a new report from the Washington-based Food Research and Action Center, only 39 percent of eligible low-income students in Baltimore took advantage of the free breakfast offered in schools during the 2005-2006 school year. But at schools participating in Maryland Meals for Achievement, which provides breakfast to students in their classrooms rather than requiring them to come in early and go to the cafeteria, 71 percent of kids ate what's so often dubbed the most important meal of the day.

According to FRAC, numerous studies have highlighted the link between breakfast and learning: Kids who eat breakfast perform better on tests, behave better, have fewer visits to the school nurse, and are less likely to be obese. Nationall, FRAC estimates, 45 percent of students who receive a government-subsidized school lunch also eat a school breakfast.

Baltimore was one of 23 cities included in the latest FRAC study. In the midst of the period studied, in January 2006, the city school system began offering free breakfast to all elementary and middle school students regardless of income. But since most city kids were eligible for the free breakfast anyway, the move did not lead to a dramatic difference in participation numbers. School system officials have been reluctant to serve breakfast in classrooms on a wide scale for fear of rodents and other sanitary problems.