Our goal is to develop soil research plots so students can experience hands-on science in the garden. Our school was established on an old farm, where the topsoil had been sold by the previous farmers. Last year students tested the soil in the area where we plan to establish the study plots and found absolutely zero nitrates, phosphates, and the texture of the soil was pure sand.
College Park Elementary School's garden will be a teaching garden where students plant, grow, harvest, and enjoy eating fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs in connection with grade-level curriculum content.
Our goal is for our students to graduate from our campus with the skills & understanding of what healthy foods are, how to find the joy of growing them, & the awareness of the environmental impact they have. The Whole Kids Foundation Garden Grant will enable Crown Valley Elementary School to provide much needed repairs to our existing garden & green house, lesson plans for the teachers to use in the garden, & materials and seeds to plant & continue growing a thriving garden from year to year. Our garden is the central focus of our school grounds.
The River Gate Garden was established to enhance student learning with a hands on laboratory. As an extension to the science program for our 790 students, the garden serves as a permanently placed "growing" part of our school that provides opportunities for students to understand where food comes from. They see the effects of the topics discussed in class first hand as the soil, water, and seeds work together to produce flowers and vegetables from one week to the next.
Cleveland State Community College (CSCC) students will work with Taylor Elementary staff, teachers, and students to develop a Literacy garden at Taylor Elementary School. CSCC English students will read and write with the Taylor Elementary students in the Literacy garden.
The goal of Clark School's garden is to create dynamic and project based learning opportunities for the students. Through these dynamic outdoor and hands-on learning experiences the students will learn about healthy food choices, how vegetables and fruits grow, creating ecosystems for native plants and insects. The grant will allow the school to further develop the vegetable and wildlife garden with additional plantings and raised beds. The grant will also allow us to purchase classroom materials to be used in the garden to augment the students' scientific understanding.
Gardening is an important part of the Waldorf curriculum. We have used container gardens, raised beds, and tilled in-ground gardens at our two school campuses to meet the school's gardening curriculum goals for our elementary, kindergarten, and pre-K students. Our school is expanding our kindergarten and pre-K program at our Meshewa campus to include daily kindergarten and nursery classes.
