School Programs & Visits

New Friends & Partners in the Summertime

  • FCPS Outreach

    Farm to School Frederick loved being involved with the Fun Academics in the SummerTime Market Day and the Butterfly Ridge Block Party! Wonderful people and programs benefiting the community. Between these 5 events F2S & Moon Valley Farm donated 320 pounds of squash, 80 pounds of peaches, 28 pounds of peppers, and pints of cherry tomatoes!

  • FCPS SUCCESS

    We’ve met new friends and formed new partnerships at the FCPS SUCCESS Program. Through a collaborative effort, zucchini donated by Summer Creek Farm, distributed by F2S Frederick, and prepared by the students and staff of the FCPS SUCCESS Program turned into delicious zucchini bread available at the SUCCESS Coffee Shop.

  • Food Recovery & Redistribution

    Community partnering has saved over 2,000 pounds of locally grown produce from becoming waste and has redirected it to Frederick distribution sites for residents to enjoy. We can’t thank Summer Creek Farm enough for their generosity in donating fresh produce to neighbors in need!

  • Distribution Site Partners

    Farm to School has partnered with FCPS SUCCESS, The Boys & Girls Club Frederick Chapter, Blessings in a Backpack, The Rescue Mission, The Food Bank, and The Community Fridge to distribute a nutritious summer bounty!

F2S

Eat Your Words! Sylvia’s Spinach Event

  • Distribution of Sylvia’s Spinach by Katherine Pryor is part of a statewide program linking Reading to Healthy Eating. This program encourages parents and students to connect with fresh food, activities and reading over the summer. Visit UMD Extension SNAP-Ed to see more resources.

    UMD ext SNAP Ed

  • Farm to School Frederick was instrumental in finding a local farm that would be able to supply FCPS with the amount of local spinach they needed for the in school spinach salad to coordinate with the book distribution.

  • FCPS Nutrition Services procured, prepared, and served a delicious spinach salad on the lunch line at Butterfly Ridge, Lincoln, Monocacy, North Frederick, Waverly and Rock Creek and encouraged students to try Sylvia’s Spinach Salad!

  • Try this healthy, delicious, and easy to make Fruit & Spring Greens Recipe provided by the University of MD extension!

    Go to Recipe

  • Potomac Valley Organics, one of F2S Fredericks wonderful farm partners, provided over 100 pounds of locally grown, organic baby spinach to FCPS Nutritional Services.

    Visit the Farm

F2S Frederick is thrilled to be a part of the Eat Your Words Spinach Event offered by the University of Maryland Snap-Ed. When FCPS Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) got word that UMD SNAP-Ed was hosting this event and providing 4,757 copies of the book, Sylvia’s Spinach by Katherine Prior, FNS jumped on the opportunity to serve fresh spinach as part of the school lunch program at STAR schools! And that’s when Farm to School Frederick got the call from FNS! F2S Frederick, through their network of local farmers, identified a Frederick County farmer with hundreds of pounds of highly nutritious, in season, hand picked spinach available for purchase, right around the corner in Union Bridge Maryland! The name of the farm is Potomac Valley Organics. Following the event on May 26th, there will be an online reading by the author on Thursday June 9th. Join with thousands of families across Maryland as we read the featured book, Sylvia’s Spinach, and explore the wonders of fruits and vegetables–at home, at the farmers market, and in the garden! To access this event and a wide assortment of resources for students, parents and teachers, click this link, Eat Your Words. This event displays the impact that collaboration can have! F2S Frederick is thrilled to work with our FCPS and the University of Maryland!

 

Parkway Elementary School Garden Project

  • Parkway parents, staff, and volunteers have taken on the task of rejuvenating this large garden space. The goal is to create an environment where students, a garden club, butterflies, bees, birds and other wildlife will all thrive together. F2S Frederick is cheering you on!

  • Early spring and things are sprouting up everywhere! F2S Frederick talks with team leads to hear about garden goals, evaluate the site, help identify existing plants, and develop strategies to make this an educational sensory garden. Supporting pollinators is also a high priority to the team. Pollinators are essential for the production of many of the nutrient dense fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and oils we consume. This is a masterpiece in progress, stay tunes!

Sabillasville Elementary School

Farm to School Frederick was thrilled to visit Sabillasville Elementary, 1st through 5th grades, to share with students about the concept of seasonality and food! We explored the four seasons and the foods that grown in each season in Maryland. We asked them, “Why would it be a good idea to eat foods that are in season?” Following we dove in and learned a lot of fun food facts about a highly nutritious, locally grown spring vegetable - kale! We provided hands-on experiences with kale, provided each student with a piece of kale and walked through the five senses of sight, smell, sound, touch, taste. We didn’t stop there - we then made a kale salad together and offered a tasting! For many this was the first time they had heard of kale and tasted kale. Many students asked for seconds! Students left our kale class with new knowledge, green fingers and lots of smiles on their faces!

 

Waverley Elementary School - Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Program

F2S Frederick had a wonderful visit to Waverley Elementary for the roll out of their Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Program. This program introduces elementary school children to a variety of fruits and vegetables that they otherwise might not have the opportunity to sample. The tastings are offered two to three times per week throughout the school year in select schools. Tasting new healthy foods early in life can influence food choices and improve health in later years. F2S Frederick has connected the Food and Nutrition Services department with locally grown, highly nutritious fruits and vegetables grown by Frederick County farmers! The carrots for this tasting were provided by Piece of Harmony Farm located in Myersville!