…participants only. If you would like to apply for funds for your preK-12 classroom, please fill out this application. What are the criteria for selection? This funding is open to community college Early Childhood Education instructors in North Carolina. We accept funding applications on a rolling basis and award them as funding is available. What is required of Growing Minds @ Community College recipients? After you are awarded GM@CC Funding and…
…ar growing conditions, and they may be susceptible to the same pests and diseases. Growers can use this information to decide when and where to plant their crops each year. The Nightshade plant family is large, with over 2,000 species of plants, a small portion of which are cultivated as crops we eat or as ornamental flowers, like petunias. Nightshades trace their origins to South, Central, and North America. Nightshade plants often have hairy or…
…selection will be based on the following areas: Priority will be given to classes that have not received this grant in the past year. Priority will be given to Head Start and/or CACFP programs and schools with high rates of free and reduced lunch. Proposals that plan for hands-on student experiences, and/or authentic farm experiences (please plan your activity with the idea that smaller groups make the experience better). Connection with other Far…
…velyn Cheesman, who was the first woman to take charge of the London Zoo insect house, and who later embarked on eight solo expeditions to collect insects on distant islands. Watch a read-aloud of this book on YouTube. Find more books Looking for more bug-themed children’s books for your young entomologist? Visit the Growing Minds’ farm to school literature database to browse our collection of recommended books. Type “insects” into the search bar…
…are for you, too! What you can do Apply for farm field trip funds Find a list of farms that welcome visitors on ASAP’s Online Local Food Guide Read or download The Hayride: A Resource for Educational Farm Field Trips for tips and suggestions for your trip Request a class pack of (or print your own) Farm Tour Bingo Cards to take on your farm field trip. Bingo cards can be played like a scavenger hunt to encourage student engagement and investigatio…
…ASAP’s Local Food Guide for Kids is a guide to area school gardens, family-friendly farms, and other Farm to School happenings in Asheville City schools and schools in Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson, and Jackson counties. Find the second edition in schools and online now!…
…rgy needed to transport them, lessening emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases. Celebrate Earth Week by cooking up a big batch of Mashed Potatoes with Spinach for dinner. Kids can help with tearing the spinach into small pieces, mashing the potatoes, and mixing everything together. If you prefer, you can substitute another locally grown green of your choice for the spinach. Kale, Swiss chard, or cabbage will all be tasty substitutions in this…
…ing less frequently in the fall, but don’t stop tending your garden altogether. Many exciting things will continue taking place. Observing seasonal changes in the garden helps you hone your skills as a grower, and helps children use their senses to explore the world around them. — That’s it for this week. Check back next week for new resources. Click here to access Day by Day resources from past weeks. If you didn’t find what you’re looking for he…
…he garden. Book for Monday, 6/22: Carlos and the Squash Plant / Carlos y la planta de calabaza This week’s first book recommendation is Carlos and the Squash Plant / Carlos y la planta de calabaza by Jan Romero Stevens. This bilingual story is printed in both English and Spanish. Carlos spends his days working in his family’s garden in New Mexico. Each evening, his mother instructs him to take a bath before coming to the dinner table. See what…
…cycle during one growing season; that is, they sprout from seed, blossom, set seed, and die within a short time. In this list, we divide them into cool-season and warm-season annuals. Cool-season types, such as lettuce and spinach, grow best when daytime temperatures are 60° to 70° F. Warm-season annuals, including beans and corn, grow best when daytime temperatures in the mid-70’s through the 90’s. Biennial plants live for two growing seasons. D…