October is National Farm to School Month!!
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This year's Farm to School Month theme is Rooted in Community: Growing Stronger, Together. Check out the National Farm to School Network website for resources, templates, and ideas that you can use during the month. If you have a Farm to School Month activity, please add it to their national calendar at the bottom of the webpage!
They also want to invite you to NFSN's Movement Meeting, an opportunity to showcase farm to school across the country and set intention with the farm to school movement in the coming year (Free and open to the public so please share!) October 26, 3-5pm EST. Register here!
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Explore Our October Farm to School Resources
October Harvest of the Month: Cabbage
Look for cabbage in the school cafeteria or at the farmers market this month! Farmers grow this versatile vegetable in the spring and fall. Try cabbage raw on sandwiches and tacos, or cooked in soups and stews.
Learn more about cabbage with our October Farm to School Resources, including local food recipes and children’s books, plus This Week in the Garden activity guides.
Growing Minds Day by Day:
Our seasonal resource lists feature a theme related to food, gardening, or nature. Each list includes thematic recommendations for children’s literature, local food recipes, lesson plans, activities, and online resources curated by the Growing Minds team. October resource lists feature cabbage, autumn, apples, and pumpkins.
Growing Minds Farm to School Interest Form
Growing Minds is ASAP's (Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project) farm to school program. Our vision is that children learn about and have positive experiences with local food and farms in the classroom, cafeteria, and community. To help make this happen, we offer a variety of FREE farm to school resources and support for schools and other organizations. Fill out our form here.
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Apple Quesadillas with Cabbage Salad recipe and lesson plan
Yield: 20
Ingredients:
- Whole wheat tortillas
- 16-24 oz. cheddar or Monteray jack cheese (grated)
- 10 local apples
- 1 head local red cabbage
- 4 carrots (grated)
- 1 bunch cilantro
- Salt and pepper
Instructions:
- Wash the cabbage, apples, and carrots.
- Core and peel the apples. Cut them into smaller pieces and put all of the pieces into the medium bowl.
- Spread 1/4 cup of cheese and two or three apple slices over 1/2 of a tortilla. Fold the tortilla over the cheese in half and place it on a tray or cookie sheet.
- Put several tablespoons of butter into the saute pan or griddle over medium heat. Add the quesadillas and cook until the cheese is melted
- Remove quesadillas from heat and place back on the trays. Cut the tortillas in half after they have cooled.
- Cut the cabbage into small pieces. Put the chopped cabbage into a large bowl.
- Add the grated carrots to the large bowl with the cabbage.
- Using your fingers, remove cilantro leaves from the stems and rip the cilantro into very small pieces. Add cilantro to the cabbage mixture.
- Stir the cabbage mixture.
- Top each quesadilla with the cabbage salad. Enjoy!
The lesson plan includes step-by-step instructions for cooking this recipe in the classroom, curriculum connections, and related books to read.
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Growing Minds is a program of ASAP (Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project). ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food.
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Tomorrow is
NC Crunch Day!
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Join schools, childcare centers, and organizations across the state of North Carolina in celebrating National Farm to School Month by crunching into a locally grown fruit or vegetable. The 2023 NC Crunch will take place tomorrow, Wednesday, October 18th. Participants of all ages are invited to crunch with us! This annual event, co-sponsored by the NC Farm to Preschool Network and the Farm to School Coalition of NC, celebrates farm to school/preschool, NC agriculture, local farmers and farm workers, and healthy eating. Learn more and register your Crunch event here!
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Farm to School
Books of the Month
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The Giant Cabbage, An Alaska Folktale
by Cherie B. Stihler
Moose chooses his largest cabbage to enter into the Giant Cabbage Contest, but he’s going to need some help from his friends!
Read aloud on YouTube.
The Runaway Pumpkin
by Kevin Lewis
A bumpin’ thumpin’ rhyming picture book about the delicious fate of a gigantic pumpkin on the run. When Buck, Billy, and their little sister Lil spy the biggest pumpkin they’ve ever seen, they can’t resist. Buck and Billy try to roll the pumpkin down the hill to show everyone, but it’s too big! Before they know it, it’s bumping and thumping and rolling down the hillside out of control. This Halloween treat by Kevin Lewis is perfect for kids and families. Read aloud on YouTube.
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The long days and hours of daylight mean crops grow huge in the Last Frontier. Brian Shunskis has placed 3rd in the Alaska State Fair giant cabbage competition for the past three years. Will this be the year he takes home the big money? He's been feeding his cabbages all summer long a secret ingredient that just might make the difference. View here.
Growing Minds Meet Your Farmer series include virtual tours of local family farms to share with students, plus educational resources that compliment the videos.
Cabbage is the key ingredient in many Southern Appalachian dishes, like coleslaw. See how cabbage is grown at Deal Family Farms, a multi-generational farm located in Franklin, NC. Learn more and view here.
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2024 Budding Botanist Grant
Deadline: October 20, 2023
The Klorane Botanical Foundation, Klorane, and KidsGardening are thrilled to partner again to offer the 2024 Budding Botanist Grant. In 2024, 20 schools will be awarded $500 each. Public, private, or charter schools that are planning a new or expanding an existing school garden program designed to teach students about environmental sustainability and the importance of biodiversity are eligible. Learn more and apply here.
NC Farm Bureau Going Local Grants
Deadline: November 15, 2023
North Carolina Farm Bureau is happy to provide agricultural outreach grants to NC teachers through their Ag in the Classroom Going Local program. These grants value up to $500. Going Local Grants help educators provide pre-K through collegiate-level students with valuable, real-world education and experiences directly related to the agricultural industry and the NC Standard Course of Study. Teachers practicing in private and public North Carolina schools, colleges, and universities are encouraged to apply. Learn more here.
Good Food Funding Guide
New Ventures Advisors LLC has updated their Good Food Funding Guide which lists sources of grants, loans, and equity for businesses and programs promoting sustainable food and agriculture and local economies. It is arranged alphabetically into four sections: Government Grants, Private Grants, Loans, and Equity. You can find the resource linked here.
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