Farm to School Program
EarthDance provides farm and garden-based education for people of all ages, especially youth. The Farm to School program at EarthDance welcomes the local school district, clubs, camps, home schooled families, church groups, educators and students of life several opportunities to learn about growing fresh food, nutrition and food justice.
Although EarthDance is committed to our local Ferguson-Florissant School District for farm to school activities, we invite everyone to visit and learn more about building healthy school communities with farm and garden-based learning curriculum.
Activities that are planned for the upcoming school year include, educational tours and field trips at EarthDance, “What’s Fresh” visits to local schools with the Freshmobile, EarthDances’ mobile kitchen, school garden work days, our AgriCulinary Internship, professional development for teachers and school staff, service learning and much more.
Interested in a Freshmobile visit? Have questions about program offerings? Want to schedule a field trip? Email Farm to School Coordinator Joia Walker: joia@earthdancefarms.org
AgriCulinary Internship
In partnership with the Ferguson-Florissant School District, EarthDance hosts Innovation High School students who participate in the AgriCulinary Internship, which is designed to prepare them for careers in the agriculture or culinary industries. During this internship, students are invited to come to EarthDance and immerse themselves in a unique agricultural experience. For six months, interns learn to grow produce on the farm and in their school’s garden using organic farming practices. They also learn to prepare healthy meals using fresh produce. The AgriCulinary internship covers additional topics like food justice and kitchen safety and sanitation and also connects students with local colleges that offer continuing education courses related to the field of agriculture and the culinary arts. Click here to apply!
The Freshmobile
The Farm to School program affords EarthDance the opportunity to educate students about EarthDance and the benefits of eating locally grown produce using our mobile kitchen, The Freshmobile. During a “What’s Fresh” tasting day, The Freshmobile visits Ferguson-Florissant schools and students are able to sample a creative dish using fresh produce grown in their own neighborhood. The Freshmobile also gives our AgriCulinary students the unique opportunity to cook outside on the farm and helps them to sharpen their presentation skills as we travel from school to school.
School Gardens
School gardens are such a great way to bring the classroom outdoors and engage students. Outdoor learning helps students in areas such as emotional, intellectual and behavioral development. As a part of farm to school education, EarthDance is hoping to connect with schools in the Ferguson-Florissant School District to develop or maintain more school gardens. We understand that time and funding may be limited so we hope to tend to school gardens with the help of the AgriCulinary Interns and connect schools with resources like Seed St. Louis that can help with materials like seeds and tools.
In addition to physically helping in the garden, EarthDance also hopes to empower Ferguson-Florissant teachers and staff through educational programs like Spring Training. Spring Training is a five week online and in-person class that is available for beginner gardeners. Tuition for Spring Training classes is covered for a limited number of Ferguson-Florissant teachers and staff. FFSD participants also receive a stipend for participating as a part of their professional development. Spring Training will begin again in March.
If you are interested in starting a garden or maintaining a garden at your school, email joia@earthdancefarms.org to schedule a school garden consultation.
