Abernethy Farm-to School Program (continued)
Slowly but surely Abernethy’s students are even fans of the
more “creative” dishes from the kitchen like chef Nicole’s chicken Panang curry, falafel with riata, hummus and pita, and garden-harvest veggie soup.
Community Involvement: Abernethy has become an hub for
community outreach and education: students and neighbors unite to study why growing organic food is so important, how to best utilize urban-green space and suc- cessfully grow edible natives, low-main- tenance landscapes and vegetables in our unique climate and soil. We see bridging the gap between the school and neighbor- ing community in collaborative projects and stewardship as absolutely essential for city-wide sustainability. For example, forth graders decided to
and sharing their skills and the bounty with others. Much of the produce grown by the children was donated to the local Loaves and Fishes, supplementing food served to housebound elders.
Research shows that school gardens: -Improve social skills and behavior.
DeMarco, L., P. D. Relf, and A. Mc- Daniel. 1999. Integrating gardening into the elementary school curriculum. HortTechnology 9(2):276-281.
-Improve environmental attitudes,
“My third grade classes and I have had a wonderful experience with the school garden program. The classes we have are informative for
reach out into the community in hopes of finding nearby garden space to grow more food in a public area as a demonstration plot for local food security and organic gardening. The local hardware store responded, offering four raised garden beds on busy Hawthorne Boulevard for students to steward. Forth graders planned the plots entirely, planting a diversity of crops important in different cultures like Thai basil and Mexican chili peppers. Students took pride in their garden plots, and gained a sense of stewardship in knowing they were bettering our neighborhood
Edible Corvallis
by Sara McCune As the Farm to School movement breezes across the
country, the community of Corvallis, Oregon has wasted little time in becoming involved. This school year marks the fourth year that the Corvallis Environmental Center has been implementing Farm to School related programming in the Corvallis School District through its Edible Corvallis Initiative. What began as monthly taste tests of seasonally available produce at one school has grown into a full-blown farm to school program: Tasting Tables at all 11 elementary and middles schools in Corvallis, science curriculum-based farm field trips, classroom cooking lessons, and an ever increasing amount of local food purchased by the school district itself. The Corvallis Farm to School program is primarily funded by an Oregon Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant with additional support from Slow Food Corvallis, the Consumer Wellness Center, Pacific Source Health Plans, and individual donors. The Tasting Table program allows upwards of 4,000
elementary and middle school students to have a connection with the Farm to School program. Each month, the students have a chance to taste a local “Harvest of the Month” while
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both my students and I. Many of the lessons include making different salads, roasting vegetables and
tasting delicious food. I love the rich experiences we have planting in the
garden and the greenhouses through the garden program.”
-Helene Siegfried (3rd Grade Teacher)
especially in younger students. Skelly, S. M., and J. M. Zajicek. 1998. The effect of an interdisciplinary gar- den program on the environmental at- titudes of elementary school students. HortTechnology 8(4):579- 583.
-Instill appreciation and respect for
nature that lasts into adulthood. Lohr, V.I. and C.H. Pearson-Mims. 2005. Children’s active and passive interactions with plants influence their attitudes and actions toward trees and gardening as adults. HortTechnology. 15(3): 472-476.
-Improve life skills, including
working with groups and self-under- standing. Robinson, C.W., and J. M. Zajicek. 2005. Growing minds: the effects of a one-year school garden program on six
constructs of life skills of elementary school children. HortTech- nology 15(3):453-457.
learning about the farm where the produce was grown and the nutritional benefits of that fruit or vegetable. Increased exposure to local, seasonal produce will give a boost to local farms while expanding the palates of Corvallis youth. In addition to Tasting Tables, the Edible Corvallis Initiative
hosts first, second, and third grade classes at its Starker Arts Garden for Education for one-hour field trips. These field trips are designed to complement and enhance the science curriculum kits that are already used in Corvallis classrooms. Rain or shine, the kids and teachers love their time in the garden, nibbling on dewy bits of kale, planting garlic, or digging in the compost for bugs.
Because learning how to eat well involves food preparation,
Corvallis’ Farm to School program offers in-classroom cooking lessons as well as after school cooking clubs at several of the elementary schools. Through the course of these lessons, the students become empowered to make
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