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At the Williamsburg
Elementary School, garden education is an integrated
part of the curriculum. Every class in the small school
Prek-6th grade (11 classes) has 24 weeks of garden
education with the garden used as an inspiration for
broad curriculum development. Teachers extend garden
class material to many subjects, linking to the curriculum
frameworks. Photosynthesis, decomposition and composting,
worms, soils, plant parts, study of world cultures,
Spanish language, are all learned hands on by planting
seeds, cultivating seasonal vegetables, harvesting,
and eating garden produce. Math is also a regular
part of gardening. The children often collect and
graph data, work through fractions and geometry to
decide how much of a garden bed to use, or work on
addition skills in figuring out how many seeds were
planted. Children learn first hand the interrelations
between their lives and the larger food, economic,
political and environmental issues of our time. Directed
garden journaling inspires critical thinking. They
become competent self-directed learners about real
life issues. In addition, the process reaches beyond
schools into a community of parents, teachers, farmers,
artists, professionals, organizations and local businesses
willing to contribute their expertise.
Classroom Cooking and Harvest Feast: Children
are able to experience the entire process of food
production including harvesting the vegetables they
grow and learning to cook with them in the classroom.
The Williamsburg
School and Fertile Ground hold an annual harvest
festival featuring dishes made by each class using
produce from the school garden. Menus have included:
pesto, garlic bread, sourdough pizza, brussel sprouts,
squash pie, red popcorn, roasted pumpkin and sunflower
seeds, collard torte, green salsa, herb teas, salad,
kale, chard rollups. (See buy
a cookbook).
Making Farm Connections and Field Trips: Classes
visit working farms, beginning in Kindergarten with
a trip to Nuestras
Raíces urban farm and community center
in Holyoke. Teachers have made their own connections
with town farmers through exhibiting school garden
produce at the annual Williamsburg Grange Fair.
Healthy Lunch: By providing new equipment,
training, and logistical assistance, Fertile Ground
makes it easier for food service staff to cook with
school garden vegetables and to purchase fresh produce
from local farms. When possible, the Williamsburg
School food service directors order salad greens,
onions, potatoes, apples, berries and squash from
local farms. Fertile Ground also supports school wellness
initiatives to promote serving more fresh and local
produce and cutting down on salt, fat and sugar in
meals. Fertile Ground encourages school gardens as
a way of teaching kids to make healthy choices and
to engage children in physical activity.
Community Ownership: Families care for the
garden during the summer months - watering, weeding
and eating. Parent volunteers organize community fundraisers,
the Harvest Feast, and classroom cooking.
Curriculum Building: We work closely with
teachers planning curriculum that fits their needs.
For example, the Kindergarten studies Puerto Rican
culture and geography as a social studies unit. The
first and second grades cover plant science in the
garden, and language arts by journaling about their
garden experiences and observations. Third grade covers
science and math units by studying soil sciences,
the water cycle, and photosynthesis, and covers history/social
studies with Native American Three Sisters Agricultural
traditions. The fourth grade studies root crops and
soil types and fifth graders have used the garden
to study math and economics buy selling seeds and
building cold frames. 6th grade studies geography
with herbs and is working on examining social justice
issues in their own communities and the communities
of people they have met through gardening. Each class
also selects crops to plant and cooks a meal in the
fall for the Harvest Feast.
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