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Farm to Head Start in North Carolina and OregonEmily Jackson, Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, North Carolina

Stacey S. Williams, Ecotrust, Oregon

+Agenda

1:45-2:00 Introductions and Icebreaker

2:00-2:35 Introduction to Farm to Childcare, Our Projects, Others

2:35-2:50 Group Exercise: Differences Between Pre-K and K-12

2:50-3:05 Practical Skills for Cultivating Farm to Childcare

3:05-3:15 Questions

+Farm to Childcare:An Introduction

+What is Farm to Childcare?

Farm to School: Connects local food producers and processors with the

school cafeteria or kitchen Food- and garden-based education in the classroom,

lunchroom, and community

Ages 0-5

Childcare centers, preschool, Head Start, daycare centers, in-home care

+Why Farm to Childcare?

Rely on parents/caregivers to create food/activity environments

Consume as much as 80% of daily nutrients in childcare

Early patterns are a determinant of later eating/physical activity habits

Dramatic increases in obesity among preschoolers

Low consumption of fruits and vegetables

+Why Farm to Childcare? Continued…

K-12 farm to school movement strong

Prepare preschoolers for farm to school programs as they enter K-12

+Why Head Start?

Vulnerable population

Industry leader

Parental involvement

Curriculum is experiential = a good fit

Connections with K-12

+Farm to Head Start in North CarolinaThe Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project

Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (ASAP) Mission - Our mission is to collaboratively create and expand regional community-based and integrated food systems that are locally owned and controlled, environmentally sound, economically viable, and health promoting.

ASAP Vision -Our vision is a future food system throughout the mountains of North Carolina and the Southern Appalachians that provides a safe and nutritious food supply for all segments of society; that is produced, marketed and distributed in a manner that enhances human and environmental health; and that adds economic and social value to rural and urban communities.

APPALACHIAN GROWN certification program

Roof Top Garden at Battery Park Apts. – Farm to Seniors: Partnership with Council

on Aging

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School gardens

Farm field trips

Experiential nutrition education

Local food in schools

www.growing-minds.org

Growing Minds Farm to School Program

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Teaching local chefs to cook with

children in culturally and

developmentally appropriate ways

that are also linked to the

Standard Course of Study

CHEF FEST

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Kick Off Event

Everyone had a meal together. Then families cooked with a chef, planted

the garden, and participated in

other educational activities.

Farm to Head Start

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SUPPLIES PROVIDED TO HEAD START CENTER

+TEACHER WORKSHOPLessons learned from our experience shared with Head Start instructors from the surrounding area

FARM FIELD TRIPS WERE A BIG HIT –

THIS FARMER PROVIDED

SOME OF THE FOOD FOR

THE CENTER

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Head Start garden provided endless opportunities for

“teachable moments”

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Cooking demos and classes highlighting locally grown food (great way to build

excitement for veggies from the school garden!)

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Assistance to the child

nutrition director:

Helped with sourcing

and provided a cooking kit

+ Food and Children

School gardens - children WILL eat what they grow

Cooking classes and demonstrations – children WILL eat what they cook

And children, as adults, appreciate food that is

pleasing to look at and is well-prepared with fresh

ingredients.

+Farm to Head Start in OregonEcotrust Food & Farms

+EcotrustFood & Farms Program

+Oregon Farm to School and School Garden Network

+Harvest of the Month and Local Lunches

+Farm to Head Start in Oregon

Oregon Child Development Coalition

3 pilot sites

Goals and activities: Connections with local farmers and food processors Increase local purchasing Promote food- and garden-based education

Outcomes: Create a replicable model Stimulate new markets for regional farmers

and food processors

+Farm to Childcare Literature

By age 3, many children develop dislike for vegetables and are reluctant to eat or taste them (Niklas et al., 2001)

Preference for vegetables in preschool children is a strong predictor of vegetable consumption (Birch, 1979; Harvey-Berino, et al. 1997; Morris & Zidenberg-Cherr, 2002).

Tasting new foods several times helps children to accept them (Birch & Marlin, 1982; Sullivan & Birch, 1994; Niklas et al., 2001);

5 to 10 exposures to become comfortable and familiar with a new food (Sullivan & Birch, 1994; Niklas et al., 2001)

+Farm to Childcare Literature Continued…

Childcare providers influence eating practices of children in varied and complex ways (Niklas et al., 2002)

At some childcare centers, quality of meals is poor, and menus inadequate in key vitamins and minerals (Niklas et al., 2002)

Preschool children may accept a novel vegetable after exposure to positive messages (Byrne and Nitzke, 2002)

+Farm to Childcare:Current Programs

+Early Sproutswww.earlysprouts.org

+Farm to Preschool Pilot Program: Center for Food & Justice (UEPI)Key components:

Nutrition education for preschoolers and parents

Fresh food access from local farmers and farmers’ markets

Rigorous program evaluation Multimodal outreach to communities,

preschools, and parents in Los Angeles and throughout the country

+Farm to Preschool Pilot Program: Center for Food & Justice (UEPI) Project goals:

Facilitate a network exploring farm to preschool initiatives at the regional, state, and national level

Expand and evaluate new farm to institution models Facilitate a demonstration site for hosting training

workshops to interested preschools Enable continued healthy fresh food access to

preschool families after project end Create a usable wellness policy for preschools Ultimately reduce the prevalence of childhood obesity

through early intervention

+From Our Farmshttp://gloucester.rcre.rutgers.edu/fchs/fromourfarms.html

+Growing a Green Generationhttp://horticulture.unh.edu/ggg.html

+Portland, Oregon: Harvest of the Month and Local Lunch

+Group Exercise:Differences between Farm to School in Pre-K and K-12Discuss some the aspects that differentiate farm to school programs in pre-K vs. K-12 (challenges AND opportunities )

+Pre-K and K-12 Differences: Classroom

More parental involvement in Head Start than K-12 Head Start instructors may have limited educational

background compared to K-12 Instructors are often required to do home visits, thereby

strengthening the home to school connection Services are provided to Head Start parents (health and

nutrition, parenting, etc.) Some Head Start centers are home-based rather than

centralized K-12 Head Start classes usually smaller and have higher teacher to

student ratio Experiential instruction more widely used and accepted in

Head Start

+Pre-K and K-12 Differences:Food Procurement

More regulations on what can be grown in children’s garden (Head Start)

Head Starts are a smaller market than K-12 for potential farmers

Ability for farmers and Head Start centers to establish closer relationship

May not have centralized distribution

No a la carte or choices

+Practical Skills for Cultivating Farm to Childcare Programs

+Farm to Childcare: Practical Skills

Finding a partner

Goal setting and program design

Steps to make connections with local farmers and food processors

+Farm to Childcare: Practical SkillsContinued…

Challenges:

More restrictions on what can be grown (night shades particularly not allowed – tomatoes, peppers, potatoes)

Physical outdoor environment more restricted

Establishing Head Start Gardens

+Farm to Childcare: Practical SkillsContinued…Establishing Head Start Gardens

Opportunities:

Of course, grow edibles!

Include a sand or soil box nearby (for kids that might not be tuned into the garden that day)

Plant with the senses in mind

Use lots of color

Consider planting fruit trees/bushes

Cook with what you grow or at least taste it

+Farm to Childcare: Practical SkillsContinued…

Be a good role model – eat your veggies!

Invite the parents

Buy one of these

Experiential Nutrition Education

+Farm to Childcare: Practical SkillsContinued…Farm Field Trips:

Try to go to the farm that supplies the food to the Head Start center (if applicable)

Make sure you have access to bathrooms

Dress appropriately and come prepared (water, name tags, sunscreen)

Provide authentic experiences – let the children do something real, like plant or weed or harvest

Make an inclement weather plan

+Farm to Childcare: Practical SkillsContinued…Promoting complementary food- and

garden-based education

Documenting and evaluating the project (Robinson-O’Brien et al., 2009; Joshi et al., 2008)

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Thank you! Questions?

Contact Information:

Emily Jackson: emily@asapconnections.org

Stacey S. Williams: swilliams@ecotrust.org