The problem

Lack of knowledge of where your food comes from.

The educational program response

Five part program series including planting a garden and incorporating the produce into the menu.

The participants/target audience

55 4th graders

Other partners (if applicable)

Farm Bureau, Kentucky Nutrition Education

Program impact or participant response.

Students learned what plants need to produce; learned how plants grow; tasted new (to them) vegetables

AB Chandler Garden Project

The Henderson County School System qualifies for free/reduced lunch program and historically, fresh, local produce has been lacking in their menu.  Many elementary school children also lack education on where there food comes from.

Coordinating with AB Chandler Elementary School, we applied for a grant from Kentucky Nutrition Education to support building two 10ft raised beds and planting vegetables.  We incorporated three educational programs into the spring including Dig In Lessons from the SNAP website.  The lessons concentrated on the value of vegetables in your diet and the different types of vegetables.

56 4^th grade students helped plant the garden learning about how plants grow, what is needed for plant development, proper spacing, and water requirements.  A few pollinator plants were incorporated to introduce a quick lesson on pollination.

This fall, the garden’s produce will be incorporate into the schools cafeteria.