Have you ever asked kids where food comes from?

Here are some of the answers we have heard: 

• “From the grocery store!” 

• “Mom’s car!” 

• “From the refrigerator!” 

And even if they do know that food comes from a farm… many have never met a real farmer! 

However, field trips can be expensive and challenging to organize. So this week,  thanks to modern technology - we decided to bring the farmer to the school! 

As part of CACFP Week, we invited children and their teachers across Georgia to take a farm field trip with us! This field trip was co-hosted with the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) Nutrition Services Division. Even CALi, DECAL’s adorable mascot, was there! 

We got to meet Nichole, Neighborhood Charter School’s full-time Farm Educator. She teaches gardening and grows food with over 600 students during the year! 

In the virtual field trip, Farmer Nichole showed the children how strawberries grow. She demonstrated how their flowers turn into fruit. She shared, “we always tell children - first the flowers” (and she wiggles her fingers) ”and then the fruit!”  (and she makes a fist.) 

We even got to see the tiny white flowers and also found a very green, unripe strawberry!  

Then, Farmer Nichole showed us some of her favorite tools and how to use them- like a trowel and a ho!

Here are a few questions from children: 

• Why do you like being a farmer? 

  • Nichole: Oh, so many reasons! I love being a farmer because I love being outside as much as possible. I love working with the soil, and I love insects and worms. I really love to eat fresh fruits and vegetables, and being a farmer helps me do that.

• What are your favorite plants to grow on the farm?

  • Nichole: Hmm, we grow lots of things! I would think my favorites are probably sweet potatoes. I love those! I love to grow carrots and radishes. And I really love to grow broccoli and cauliflower. We're even growing a special plant right now called kohlrabi! That's the thing I love about growing fruits and vegetables; we can grow lots of different kinds of things that we can't always find in the grocery store!

• What can we plant in our garden that will be ready before school is out? 

  • Nichole: So, one thing that we just sowed on the farm last week is sugar snap peas. We love to grow those because even if we don't get a lot of peapods before school is out, we love to eat the pea shoots from the tops of the plants! There's always something delicious to eat. We also love to grow radishes and lettuce. Those are all things you can plant now and harvest before school is out!

It was so much fun going on a farm field trip. Where should we go next? 

This is a partner project with Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning to celebrate CACFP Week, and funded in part by USDA Farm to School Grant Program and Partnership for Inclusive Innovation (PIN).