Farm to School Institute: Sustaining Farm to School Workshop

SUSTAINING FARM TO SCHOOL

Molly Nicholie, Program CoordinatorAppalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project

Program Sustainability

Local food in schools

Farm field trips

School gardens

Local food cooking

www.growing-minds.org

A face, a connection, and a story

Local food in school

Farm Field Trips

Authentic experiences

Cooking with Local Food

Hands-on positive experiences

School Gardens

Inspiring inquiry

WHY IS FARM TO SCHOOL IMPORTANT? “What people do not understand, they do not value; what they do not value,

they will not protect, and what they do not protect, they will lose.” - Charles Jordan

Creating Buy In and Connection

Why People Get Involved in Farm to School

How you frame Farm to School is VERY IMPORTANT.

Farm to School integration that supports the state mandated curriculum is the message that resonates

most with schools! Not that we are going to make our children healthier or that we are trying to grow the next

generation of farmers.

Teachers need to hear how it will benefit their students EDUCATIONALLY.

Third, fourth, and fifth grade students who participated in school gardening activities scored significantly higher on science achievement tests compared to students that did not experience any garden-based learning activities.

Klemmeret al. (2005)

How Students learn

Evidence that supports your work

Top 5 Reasons Why Outdoor Classrooms Succeed

Community support Student involvement Funding Teacher training Administrative support

Source: GWF survey, 2004

#1 Community Support

Who can help?

Potential Resources

Cooperative Extension / Master Gardeners

Local church groups Health Departments Boys and Girls Club YMCA/YWCA University

personnel/students Parents Area experts

(beekeepers, farmers, garden clubs, etc.)

Non-profit groups

Why Farm to School?

Promotes hands-on, interdisciplinary learning

Builds sense of community Motivates children to learn Obesity prevention Great way to integrate parent

participation Promotes local farms Provide children with access to fresh,

nutritious foods. Creates connection with our rural

communities. Children are more willing to try new

foods Keeps food dollars in the community

Why Bother with partners?

Changing mindsets, attitudes, and behaviors is slow and challenging work that requires a number of strategies and approaches.

People and organizations need to hear from a trusted source before they will try something new

Accomplish tasks that you don’t have the expertise for

Gain different perspectives Expand the reach – each partner

has their own constituencies Access resources – different

partner have different resources

Partners come in all shapes and sizes – local,

state, regional, national.

#2 Student Involvement

#3 Funding

How much does it cost?

For a class tasting of 20 students:

Cherry tomato: $4Cucumber: $3Cabbage: $3-4Sweet potato: $2Apple (Two months): $4-6Lettuce : $3Strawberry: $3-4Total: $20-25

Fundraising Create a simple brochure and

standard solicitation letter on school letterhead that can be used by anyone to easily explain your project and ask for donations.

Check with local construction companies to see if they have extra building materials they can donate.

Buy seeds in bulk, repackage them and sell them at a farmers market or flea market

Run a regularly updated wish list for your program in your school newsletter, website or community paper.

Promote Your Program

Tell Your Story

#4 Teacher Training

But does it relate to the test?

It’s Not Just About Science : The Common Core

English Language Arts: Integrated model of

Literacy

ReadingWritingSpeaking and ListeningLanguage

Making sense of problems Abstract and quantitative

reasoning Constructing viable

arguments and critiques Modeling with math Strategically using tools Focusing on precision Identifying/using structure

and repeated reasoning.

Practice = Goals for how students engage

Connecting Mathematical Practice and Content

Students need real life context, exposure, practice, and curiosity.

Expectations with that begin with the word “understand” are often good opportunities to connect practices and content.

When Students who don’t understand a topic they tend to rely on procedures and have difficultly applying concepts. This prevents them from engaging in process.

Connecting Mathematical Practice and Content

Content = Balanced combination of procedure and understanding.

#5 Administrative Support

Connecting the Cafeteria to the Classroom and Community

Providing positive experiences with

locally grown food – for adults too!

Making Connections

Wellness Policy

Purchasing Policy

Creating an Action Plan

Where do you go from here?

Best Practices

Parent engagement and empowerment are critical

Teacher training Experientially

based nutrition education

Work within existing systems

Best Practices

Start small – “low hanging fruit”

School-wide buy-in Personal

experiences and positive connections for staff

Explore common goals

Making Connections

Lots of great resources available

AREAS OF WORK•Policy

•Networking

•Media and Marketing

•Training and Technical Assistance

•Information Services

WHO WE ARE•Eight Regional Lead Agencies•Four National Staff

National Farm to School NetworkASAP is the SE Regional Lead Agency

FIND YOUR REGIONAL LEAD AGENCYwww.farmtoschool.org

Top 5 Reasons Why Outdoor Classrooms Succeed

Community support Student involvement Funding Teacher training Administrative support

Source: GWF survey, 2004

Farm to School Partners

Connect To Curriculum

Use = Sustainability

Keep It Simple

Questions?