Another Great Year for Worcester Kindergarteners

It’s been a busy year at the Worcester Kindergarten Initiative! The initiative, which is facilitated by the Massachusetts Farm to School Project in conjunction with the Worcester Public Schools, is a multidisciplinary nutritional education program that aims to teach kindergarteners about healthy eating and local farms in a fun, hands-on way.

Last week’s field trips to Community Harvest Project’s Brigham Hill Farm in North Grafton marked the end of the program’s third year in action. Community Harvest Project (CHP) is a volunteer-cultivated farm that aims to build a thriving, healthy community around the mission of hunger relief. Last year, the work of 7,000 volunteers allowed over 250,000 pounds of fresh produce to be donated to the Worcester County Food Bank. Our students were excited to get their hands dirty and learn more about the importance of fresh fruits and vegetables — not only in their own lives, but in the Worcester community as well.

Kindergarteners explored the farm on a hayride tour, helped CHP volunteers plant seedlings in the fields, taste-tested a variety of fresh vegetables, and planted their very own cherry tomatoes to take home. In addition to our 450 students, nearly 60 parents and caregivers joined their kindergarteners to share their local farm experience. For many of these family members, it was their first time on a farm and it was great to hear their thoughts about the visit. A number of adults talked about returning to Community Harvest Project with their children to help out later on this summer.

The trips also gave us a chance to talk with students about what they had learned in the Kindergarten Initiative this year. We chatted with them about local produce, healthy foods, and the importance of farms. Their enthusiasm was contagious — it’s impossible not to get excited when you hear a kindergartener talk about the food cycle or rattle off a long list of the vegetables they love to eat!