Southwest Elementary School

Our school could benefit in many ways from a garden. The children at Southwest are mostly inner city children, with little experience of nature and gardens. In fact, they are terrified of bugs and start off the year disgusted by the compost bin I put outside my classroom! As part of our health and fitness initiative, we are starting to make some exciting changes. Our cafeteria is serving healthier choices, and we have implemented a healthy snack policy. We have increased the amount of time the children spend weekly doing physical activity. For instance, they go to both physical education (PE) class weekly, but also Dance class. We start every recess with a run around the track and then jumping jacks. It is making a difference in how the kids feel and perform. Another huge difference could be made if we had a school garden and they could raise and then eat their own fruits and vegetables!

This program is supported by .