Farm to school
programs are beneficial to everyone. Whether farmers are providing the healthy food options that children eat during school lunch which can provide them with the needed energy to get through the day or the use of a community school garden, the health benefits are tremendous--both mental and physical. We’ve talked about the therapeutic release
farming can provide, especially for kids who spend countless hours a day
sitting in a classroom. A school garden implemented by a farm to school
movement can help alleviate the stress. Additionally, the education about food
helps teach responsibility to students. Imagine the sense of pride, joy, and
empowerment a child feels when she eats a salad made from lettuce, radishes,
and sprouts she grew herself in the school garden. No child is going to turn
down produce he or she grew. Also, having children maintain the garden would
help lower costs required for labor. The ability to use the food in school
lunches would further lower costs.
What I also
think is a benefit of these programs is how easily incorporated they can be to
other subjects. For example, math: how many plants do we have growing in our
garden? If we used seven heads of lettuce to make a salad at lunch, how many
would we have left? ; science: the rain cycle, the nutrients cycle,
photosynthesis; even Art: paint your favorite thing that grows on a farm. This
reflects how integrated our food system is in respects to other areas of our
society (i.e. environmental, economic, etc.)
Besides the health and educational benefits, it further strengthens community relationships. I think most community members would be happy to show children where their food comes from and how to cook it--including chefs, community gardeners, parents, etc.
I remember being
in the first grade and having my dad (who is a chef) come in to demonstrate how
to cook for our class. Everyone was thrilled and interested in the lesson. Have
you ever had any experiences such as cooking classes or a school garden in your
years of school? Whether yes or no, how did this affect your experience of food
during elementary to high school?
I think the farm to school method is a seriously great approach to get our young people associated with food, nature and health. I think it's important for our young kids to learn about healthy foods, where it comes from and actually get used to planting their own garden! It teaches them working in groups (if they're on school gardens) and gives them confidence because nothing is better than eating something you've actually grown. Also, it's a part of a well-balanced education that could be used to improve school curriculum and make it more relatable for kids.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that farm-to-school programs and school-yard gardens are an excellent educational resource. Not only can they aid students in learning about topics such as science and math with a hands on approach, but it increases knowledge about healthy lifestyles, and in the case of school gardens, gives young students an opportunity to benefit from the more therapeutic benefits of gardening and spend more time outdoors learning from other senses, such as touch and smell, that are not typically utilized in the classroom. It seems like it contributes a more holistic approach to educating children. Also, I think it is true that kids are generally more likely to eat vegetables when they have experienced growing them. I worked at a summer camp in Maine and we had a vegetable garden that the campers could elect to work in an hour a day, and it was clear to me that those kids who helped out in the garden were more open to eating their vegetables at meal times than those who did not.
ReplyDeleteIt's not just the students that benefit either. According to the Cobb reading, schools present a $12 billion market that small farmers could benefit from to face their own challenges if they had access to it. These farm-to-school programs are a step towards opening up this market to small, local farmers.