Farm to School Link Roundup

Sometimes you need a little Farm to School inspiration from around web! So take a break from your busy day and enjoy these interesting articles, videos or photos!

Salmon tamales for school lunch? They are doing it in Alaska, where local can also mean wild. Read about how they are making the best of their short growing season.

Enjoy this article in the NYT about Sam Kass, "blazing a trail of cruciferous vegetables into the first lady’s heart."

Five high schools within the Bayfield Peninsula area of Wisconsin receive high tunnels as part of a USDA Farm to School Grant, awarded to Bayfield Regional Food Producers Cooperative. Read the full story here.

"Fresh, healthy meals are good for students, good for learning, good for the environment, and often good for school finances." Check out Making the Case for Healthier School Meals from the Center for Ecoliteracy for more information.

Image via Center for Ecoliteracy

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Mindful Eating: Part 1

In order to digest your food properly, your body must be in parasympathetic mode, or in a state of non-stress. Kindergartners know this. Well, they might not know the scientific term yet, but during lunch they participate in 6 minutes of silence; a period they call "Mindful Eating". When asked why they like mindful eating, the children replied, because "it’s quiet”, “I can enjoy my food better”, “I get peace and quiet”, and "it’s calmly”. Kindergartener teacher Ms. Scrima, and other Kennedy School teachers have been implementing mindfulness in the cafeteria and their classrooms since last year. They are proud to have a lunch period that looks and sounds quite different from the chaotic cafeteria rush other classes often experience. While the students sit silently at the lunch table checking in with their emotions, their digestive systems are also benefitting. Physiologically, only when our bodies are in rest mode can the brain trigger the release of digestive ...

Put your best FORK forward during National Nutrition Month

March is National Nutrition Month! Each year the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics develops new topics to celebrate National Nutrition Month. This year's theme, Put your best fork forward, encourages us to consider that every bite counts. Even "small shifts in our food choices, can add up over time." Here in Somerville we are celebrating National Nutrition Month in a few ways. ~ We are releasing Veggie of the Month kits in each school's library! The kits contain books, taste testing supplies, and a binder with lesson materials for each month! ~ We are visiting a few PreK-2nd grade classes to "taste-test" the veggie of the month: leafy greens! In the classroom, we are reading Sylvia's Spinach and making a simple salad dressing to drizzle over spinach! (Be sure to check back later for the results of our visits!) ~ Our Wellness Champions and Farm to School Staff are posting bulletin boards and fliers around the schools! ...

Pollinate: The 2015 Mass Farm to School Conference

On January 13, 2015 Mass Farm to School Project held a regional conference in Worcester, MA. Attending the conference were food service directors, educators, policy makers, public health advocates and farm to school enthusiasts. Three inspiring keynote speakers kicked off the conference: Ruby Maddox, Assistant Director for the Miller Worley Center for the Environment at Mt. Holyoke College, Melissa Honeywood, Food Service Director Cambridge Public Schools , and Niaz Dorry, Coordinating Director of the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance . Each speaker, offering her unique perspective, reminded us of three basic, but indispensable truths. 1. Farm to school (and sea to school) programs rely on connections and relationships. Collaborations among teachers, food service directors, farmers, fisherman, and the larger community are vital to successful farm to school programs. No one person can create a farm to school program. We need support from three...

Somerville Farm to School Project

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