One of the most rewarding things we do at the Farm to School Hub is host field trips for district students. We have enjoyed up to 300 students a year in the past, giving them a morning at the school farm and leading them through activities in our “outdoor classtoom” that bring grade-level learning standards to life. Our own G.E.T. students serve as assistant activity leaders, and thrive on this leadership opportunity. Our collaboration with UF’s Family Nutrition Program provides nutrition educators who help students create a yummy farm snack, often using vegetables or fruit they have harvested themselves. We have missed this since last March when schools closed.
Since school field trips are not a possibility this school year, we have decided to give busy families immersed in online learning the opportunity to come out to the farm. We are offering short field trips several times each month to interested families. If you would like to know more, please contact Farm to School Coordinator, Kelli Brew, at email@example.com. Field trips will allow for social distancing and be outside, and participants will be required to wear masks. Students and their adults will be divided into 3-5 small groups, totaling six people or less for a maximum of 20 participants at a time.
You can learn more about past field trips activities here, here, and here. Examples of fun and educational activities include the following:
- Garden Activity: Planting, sowing seeds, weeding, watering.
- Garden tour/scavenger hunt – Close observation of what is happening in the garden, with emphasis on grade-level science standards.
- Compost game – How does compost work, how to compost, examples of compost use.
- Tasting of nutritious garden food.
- Interactive story time.
The garden is ever-changing, and activities depend on what’s “growing on” this week. We look forward to meeting your family!