Holly Springs ES STEM Academy first-grader Jaxsen Waldrop shows off some of the kale he helped grow in the school garden.  The kale will be used to make special salads for Kickin’ it with Kale Day on Wednesday.  

UPDATE: Check out this video of highlights from "Kickin' it with Kale" Day on Oct. 3:

CCSD is participating in Georgia’s Farm to School month celebration with special menu items including a "Kickin’ it with Kale" salad on Wednesday, Oct. 3!  

The fresh kale, cranberry and apple salad will be available throughout CCSD cafeterias as a side choice at lunch on Wednesday, with students encouraged to try kale, a vegetable that may be new to them. 

The introduction of this new salad follows a taste-test at Holly Springs Elementary School STEM Academy of various kale recipes, with the salad winning the most votes.  The kale featured in the salads there is grown in the school garden, harvested by first-graders who planted the crops.  "Kickin’ it with Kale" is a statewide campaign coordinated by Georgia Organics to help students get to know kale by growing, eating, and learning about it during Farm to School Month.

Students throughout CCSD experience the Farm to School program year-round through enjoying locally and Georgia grown fruits and vegetables on school cafeteria menus, and by learning about agriculture in school gardens and classrooms.  

“These activities give students a chance to apply what they’ve learned in the classroom to real-life situations in the garden and cafeteria, and, combined with nutrition education, they are an effective way to change children’s attitudes about eating healthy food,” CCSD School Nutrition Program Director Tina Farmer said.  

#CCSDfam #KickinItWithKale

Schools throughout CCSD will be serving a fresh kale salad at lunch as part of the effort to introduce students to the vegetable.