The Giving Garden
The Garden Road School community garden space, known as ‘The Giving Garden’ is a project that will incorporate outdoor learning, community development and food education. Not only will food be grown for a CSA, (Community Supported Agriculture) but local community members will also have the opportunity to rent a raised bed for the growing season and be part of a community garden. In this program plant care responsibilities such as watering and weeding will be shared by the group and participants will have access to group gardening tools and advice from someone experienced in different farming techniques and practices. As the growing season approaches, after-school programs for community kids of different ages will begin, and this summer ‘The Giving Garden’ will be a part of the Garden Road summer camp program. During the school year students at The Garden Road will be cultivating their own plots of land! Every Friday during ‘garden time’ students of different grades will learn about the various aspects of farming, food and the natural world. This will encompass learning about the organisms present on a farm, the way seasons affect plants, and the actual techniques involved in growing food from the earth. Incorporating gardening, community and education will hopefully be one of many steps towards an integrated and healthy learning process for children and adults alike.