Farm to Early Care and Education
Farm to early care and education (farm to ECE) offers increased access to healthy, local foods, gardening opportunities, and food-based activities to enhance the educational experience in all types of ECE settings (e.g. preschools, child care centers, family child care homes, Head Start/Early Head Start, programs in K-12 school districts).
Rooted is proudly developing free Wisconsin farm to ECE resources for ECE providers, support organizations, food service staff, and food producers in the state. This work has been made possible thanks to funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek, Michigan.
Here, you will find resources from Rooted and our farm to ECE partners that aim to facilitate and empower all ECE sites to increase access to local foods, improve the nutrition environment, and enhance educational opportunities for children through hands-on learning and play in food and nutrition, inclusion of local foods in meals and snacks, planting and tending to gardens, and family engagement opportunities.
Quick Links
Featured Publications
Celebrating Seasonality
Celebrating Seasonality: Wisconsin-Grown Recipes for the Early Childhood Setting is a collection of twelve child-friendly recipes for the ECE setting that feature seasonal fruits and vegetables. These fun breakfast, lunch, and snack recipes promote the use of Wisconsin-grown produce in all ECE settings. Celebrating Seasonality also includes information to help you find more local foods, a seasonality chart of Wisconsin crops, interviews with Wisconsin farmers, and stories from Wisconsin ECE sites serving local foods.
Roots in the Ground
This comprehensive Farm to Early Care and Education (ECE) curriculum is designed to help early childhood educators feel inspired and confident in gardening and cooking activities with young children. The trainings focus on site evaluation and planning to start a small garden, as well as considerations for ECE-age appropriate gardening and cooking activities, including safety considerations, cultural connections, and garden sustainability.
Food and Nutrition: Hands-on Learning
- Farm to ECE Interest Areas for Young Children
- Áreas de interés para niños de Farm to ECE (Spanish)
- Let's Go to the Farmers' Market!
- Garlic Growing & Activities!
- Aprendiendo del Ajo!
- Farmers' Market Activity Ideas for Young Children
- Apple Taste Test for Young Children: Connections to the Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards
- Prueba de sabor a manzanas para niños pequeños (Spanish)
- Tree Exploration: A Farm to ECE Activity
- Beet and Carrots: A Farm to ECE Lesson Plan
Gardening with Young Children
- Stomp, Sniff, Snack: Indestructible Plants for Early Care and Sensory Gardens
- Plants Want to Grow: Garden Basics for Beginners
- Fearless Beginning Gardening at Your Program
- Container Herb Garden for Young Children: Connections to the Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standard
- Sunflower Garden for Young Children: Connections to the Wisconsin Model Early Learning Standards
- Winter Gardening Activities for ECE
- Safety in the Little Gardener's Garden (UW-Extension)
Purchasing Local Foods and Preparing Meals and Snacks
- How to Buy, Prepare, and Serve Local Foods
- Como comprar, preparar, y servir les productos locales (Spanish)
- Making Your Own Local Baby Food
- ¿Cómo hacer su propia comida para bebés con ingredientes locales? (Spanish)
- Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and Your Early Care and Education Program
- Farm to Child Care: A Detailed Guide for Farmers & Food Producers
- Farm to Early Care & Education for Growers
- Farm to ECE para cultivadores (Spanish)
- Fresh Produce Recipes for Microwave and Toaster Oven
- Kev Muag Zaub Thiab Txiv Hmab Txiv Ntoo Rau Chaw Zov Me Nyuam Yaus (Hmong)
- Wisconsin Foods A to Z - Poster
- Comida de Wisconsin de la A a la Z - Poster (Spanish)
Featured Books, Trainings, and Publications
Cultivating Childhood Wellness through Gardening - Updated for ECE
This online video training covers planning and establishing a youth garden, tips on involving children in the garden, and lesson plans and activities using garden produce. It was updated in 2019 to include recommendations for gardening with children under age 5. Registry credit is available (1.5 credits).
Offered by Wisconsin Early Childhood Association
Early Care & Education Training Videos
Incorporating Local Foods at Your ECE Site: Learn different ways and techniques in how to add and incorporate local foods into any early care and education site.
Hands-On Farm to ECE Activities: Learn how to incorporate hands-on farm to ECE activities in your early care and education program.
Gardening with Young Children at Your ECE Site: Learn about gardens in your early care and education program.
Family Engagement in your Farm to ECE Program: Learn about family engagement involving farm to ECE activities in your early care and education program.
Got Dirt?
Got Veggies? ECE Edition
Healthy Bites: A Wisconsin Guide for Improving Childhood Nutrition, 2nd Edition
Teaching in Nature's Classroom: Core Principles of Garden-Based Education
This publication by Nathan Larson conveys best practices in garden-based education along with evidence-based strategies, beautiful, inspiring artwork, and quotes from real children in the garden. It is sure to convince anyone of the benefits of gardening with children. Also available in Spanish.
ECE Partner Websites
Several of our partners have free resources available on their websites
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
Wisconsin School Garden Network
Wisconsin Farm to ECE Survey
The first Wisconsin farm to ECE provider and support organization surveys aimed to establish baseline data for farm to ECE participation including existing farm to ECE activities already taking place and what trainings and resources could help sites grow farm to ECE. The survey also assessed support organization staff knowledge and understanding of farm to ECE.
Have questions, comments or resource ideas? Email us.