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A school garden can be an exciting hands-on learning activity that can help young children see the benefits of growing their own nutritious foods. According to the Wisconsin School Garden Initiative program, over 200 schools statewide have school gardens with more starting each year.
“The School Nutrition Department is pleased to work collaboratively with Grow Your Brain staff to expand and develop gardens in the School Dis- trict of La Crosse. Together, we are more efficient and can utilize re- sources effectively. We achieve joint goals of increasing the amount of garden produce in school meals.”
Joni M. Ralph, RDN, CD Supervisor of School Nutrition Programs School District of La Crosse
Enough sweet corn is grown by FFA students to
An example of the many benefits school gardens bring to the classroom and beyond:
“The Onalaska School Gardens serve to encourage good nutrition through promoting greater con- sumption of fresh local produce, to teach students how to grow their own produce, and to support the existing science curriculum. The program consists of four projects. At the elementary level, students grow salad greens and radishes for the salad bar during the school year. In the summer, families are invited to care for the gardens that have been replanted with warm season vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers and beans. Families
are allowed to take the produce they harvest and prepare it at home. The third project is a large scale asparagus garden that was installed as an eighth grade class project and later cared for by sixth graders. The asparagus will be served in the school cafeteria when it is mature. Lastly, as part of a ‘Life Skills’ class, high school students grow vegetable and herb seedlings in the school green- house to be sold to high school staff in a highly anticipated plant sale. In 2011, a vermiculture proj- ect began as a collaboration between elementary students and high school math students. Onalaska elementary students traveled to Hillview’s vermi- compost facility to learn from their high-volume vermicompost operation.”
Jodie Visker
District Garden Coordinator School District of Onalaska
PHOTO: Eric O’Neill
feed all the students in the Holmen school district.
THE FARM2SCHOOL PROGRAM
(F2S) is a national program operating in all 50 states. Coulee Region Farm2School began in 2010, and as of September 2014, all La Crosse County public elementary schools as well as the La Crescent-Hokah school district are F2S participants. With the mission of cre- ating healthy bodies, minds and communities through local food, Coulee Region F2S links lunchrooms, classrooms, farms and school gardens to benefit students, schools, local farmers, and the community. Funding for the program is provided through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Transform Wisconsin project, the Wisconsin Partnership Program from the UW School of Medicine and Public Health and is supported by the
La Crosse County Health Department. Go to www.getactivelacrosse.org for further infor- mation on the Coulee Region Farm2School program.
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PHOTO: Deb Deml