As the fall weather begins to take hold in Michigan, the children at Delta Mills Nazarene Child Care Center in Lansing are harvesting the last of their crops from a summer-long garden project designed to foster their curiosity and encourage healthy eating.

This fun project was made possible by a new grant program for child care providers called "Soup and Salad" grants. Recipients of this grant were able to purchase the necessary materials needed to create and maintain a garden plot at their child care home or center. Funds for the "Soup and Salad" program were provided by the Michigan Family Independence Agency through a federal Community Food and Nutrition Grant, and awarded to 348 providers by the Michigan Community Coordinated Child Care Association (Michigan 4C).

"We have received a lot of great feedback from providers who have participated in this grant program," Mark Sullivan, Executive Director of the Michigan 4C Association, said. "It is such a wonderful experience for all of the kids involved. With the "Soup and Salad" grant, children were able to care for a garden and try a variety of fresh vegetables."

Grantees were able to use their funds to purchase a variety of gardening tools, indoor or outdoor gardening trays for "container gardening," seeds, gardening books for children and ground/soil preparation materials to create and maintain a garden plot. The "Soup and Salad" grants also allowed providers to pay for field trips to places such as local farmers' markets and community gardens.

"Children who are involved in the gardening process are more likely to establish healthy eating habits at an early age, and proper nutrition is essential to the growth and development of children," Marianne Udow, Family Independence Agency Director, said. "A child's first garden is also a wonderful learning experience where he/she can experiment and make discoveries with hands-on activities. The gardening experience also helps children raise their self-esteem as they learn responsibility."

Last May, approximately 60 children at Delta Mills Nazarene Child Care Center, ranging in age from six to 11, planted vegetables such as cucumbers, green peppers, squash, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans and tomatoes in a special garden they created outside their day care center. Each week a different age group of children tended the garden, so everyone had the opportunity to learn.

"The children had a lot of fun this summer working in the garden and picking the vegetables," Heidi Ransom, director of Delta Mills Nazarene Child Care Center, said. "We tried to get creative with our garden. Not only did the kids eat the vegetables they picked, but we also cut the vegetables in half and then painted with them. This activity allowed the children to experiment with the variety of textures that each of the vegetables created when dipped in paint."

In addition to planting the garden, the children also went on two different field trips to learn more about gardening.

"We visited the Michigan State University Children's Garden on one of our trips," Ransom said. "On our other field trip we went to Horrock's Farm Market. What a terrific experience that was for the kids because they received a free gift in each of the departments we visited. They left Horrock's with all kinds of fruits and vegetables! If this program is offered again next year, we will definitely plant another garden, only that it will be even bigger."

Licensed or registered home-based child care facilities that care for low-income children were eligible to apply for up to $300 and child care centers for up to $500.

For more information about how the FIA works to promote the early education of children, visit the FIA Web site at www.michigan.gov/fia