Somerville Farm to School Project

On this very hot day, cool off by reading and listening to Farm to School inspiration! How does a school district source 50% local food? Listen to this episode of Inside School Food to learn how they are doing it in Portland, Maine. It's Farmers' Market season! Why not encourage your kids to try something new with a farmers' market scavenger hunt . Have you ever heard about Farm to Ballet? Read about it here .

On this sunny Friday, we bring you a little Farm to School inspiration from around web! Listen to a piece about a Kindergarten teacher in Queche, VT who is taking her students outside for one whole day! We are a little jealous of these solar gardening structures at Linton Springs Elementary Schools in Sykesville, MD. image via Whole Kids Foundation Setting up an outdoor kitchen? This video from the Edible Schoolyard Project tells you everything you need to know!

On this snowy, chilly first day of spring we bring you a little Farm to School inspiration from around web! The Wisconsin School Garden Initiative shares ideas about choosing the right tools for children of all ages. They encourage us to "consciously create opportunities for our students to learn how to use tools, at every age." Watch the winning short films from this year's  Real Food Media Contest . We enjoyed the animated film, simply titled FOOD.  FOOD | 2015 Real Food Media Contest Winner from Real Food Media Project on Vimeo .

On this very chilly morning, we were delighted to wake up to an Education Week article that has us thinking spring! Jane Hirschi, founding director of City Sprouts , shares her thoughts on the special learning opportunities that a school garden provides.  We were struck by the question: "Is garden-based learning a critical educational resource all students need, as important to children's education as computer labs and libraries?" Based on what we have seen in Somerville's school gardens, we think the answer is YES! June 2014 in the Brown School Garden

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! This week we are sharing three inspiring videos! First, check out this inspiring video from Vermont FEED about what farm to school means to their network members. Then watch this video of the Farm to Five program in South Carolina where kids are eating "Five Star" soup! This week the USDA launched their Healthy Habits Take Root video series . Listen and learn about the impacts that farm to school programs are having on students, farmers, the environment and the local economy.

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! Check out Denver's innovative school lunch program that uses food trucks and smart phone apps. Read about food access organizations in Western Massachusetts. Learn about the benefits of outdoor play and exploration from the "Facilitator of Wonder" at Shelburne Farms. Enjoy this beautiful image and tutorial about how to compost . (Despite what she says, you can compost in ANY city. Somerville, and surrounding cities, even sell compost bins through their city offices.)   Image via Pretty Handy Girl   Check out this infographic from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation explain why healthier school meals matter.   Infographic: Healthier School Meals Matter by RWJF on RWJF.org

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

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! This Medford High School student's experience with the Hike and Seek and Babes in the Woods Programs at the Middlesex Fells Reservation reminds us that one can often find much needed peace and clarity of mind just by taking a walk in the woods. We are feeling inspired by the Berlin/Boylston Tahanto District's student-tended garden program! Celebrate National Farmer's' Market Week by taking your family to a local market! Read about sustainable food programs and FoodCorps in Martha Stewart Magazine .

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! We are loving this blog post about cooking with kids from Liz Neumark of Great Performances . Our favorite tip: "get messy, make mistakes" While this is technically a line of Miss Frizzle's from the Magic School Bus, Liz goes on to remind us that "Cooking is following recipes but it is also about creativity. Try new combinations, new ingredients. The more you experiment, the better and more confident you will be." David W. Orr from the Center for Ecoliteracy advises that "The classroom is the ecology of the surrounding community, not the confining four walls of the traditional school...[Where] they discover what Rachel Carson once called the 'sense of wonder' . " In this Boston Globe article ,Tony Geraci (aka Cafeteria Man ) describes his fight for healthier school foo...