Local Food in Schools
Local Food In Schools

Growing Minds connects farmers, distributors, and school food leaders to ensure students have access to healthy local food.

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Farm to Preschool
Farm to Preschool

Early childhood is a critical stage of child development. Learn how the Farm to Preschool movement is connecting young children to local food and farms to support health and wellness.

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School Gardens
School Gardens

We provide resources and support for pre-K-12 school gardens in the Southern Appalachian region, including lesson plans, training, seeds,
and mini-grants.

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F2S Spotlights
Farm to School
Spotlights

Read about the people implementing farm to school in our region, from teachers and nutrition professionals, to dietetic interns and farmers.

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Day by Day
Growing Minds
Day by Day

From gardening to goats, our farm to school-themed Day by Day resource lists can be used by families learning at home, or by educators in the classroom. Find read alouds, recipes, simple activities, and more.

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Lesson Plans

Browse our collection of garden, food and farm, and recipe lesson plans for preschool, K-5, and more. All Growing Minds lesson plans include connections to age-appropriate children’s literature and are aligned with Common Core State Standards, NC Essential Standards, or NC Foundations for Early Learning and Development.

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Seasonal Resources

Farmers grow this versatile vegetable in the spring and fall. While they originated in Europe, today cabbages are used heavily in Russian, Northern European, Korean, Latin American, and many other cuisines. Try cabbage raw on sandwiches and tacos, or cooked in soups and stews.

Explore November resources »

Meet Your Farmer

A video series by Growing Minds

Meet some of the people who grow your food! Our Meet Your Farmer and Junior Farm Tour videos provide students and families with virtual tours of family farms in Western North Carolina.

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Farm to School News

View our monthly Farm to School news here and subscribe at the bottom of this page!

2024 NC Crunch Highlight!

We know NC Crunch looked different in storm-impacted parts of our region this year. Last week Verner Center for Early Learning in Buncombe County held a garden party for their families and staff. It was the first time they came together since Hurricane Helene. Their food service staff served delicious hot meals and gave out muchneeded resources. Food Connections gave out 250 meals for families to take home. ASAP Growing Minds along with AmeriCorps member Elise Molinaro celebrated NC Crunch with an applesauce taste test and a dot survey. Locally grown apples were given out and who doesn't LOVE an apple spiralizer!

All and all it was a wonderful afternoon for the community to reconnect, give out hugs, enjoy laughter, and celebrate all that we have.

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Are you interested in receiving our Farm to School Monthly newsletter? Receive lesson plans, teaching resources, and more, delivered to your inbox each month. You can also sign up for ASAP's other newsletters.