Many students do not make the connection between the nutrients in the soil and how well or poorly the plants grow there. We are building a new raised bed community garden and need a way to monitor the soil nutrition.
I teach in a public semi rural high school.
I have an after school environmental club that has taken on the challenge of creating a community garden. The project will teach these students the basics of vegetable gardening.
Students in the club come from a variety of backgrounds, grade levels, and socioeconomic backgrounds. They are in the club mostly to learn about the environment. They are working on the community garden as a service learning project. They are learning about the environment so as a team they will compete in a state environmental competition representing their school.
My Project
I have requested soil test kits to monitor the soil in our new community garden and have students learn about the impact of nutrients on plant growth. Most of these students have never grown anything. So the opportunity to watch a plant go from seed to edible produce would be a new experience.
By producing food for others, the project will provide the students a way to impact other people in our community by providing a locally grown food product. Being able to benefit others through your own hard work builds self esteem. Learning to vegetable garden and find out how to grow food is a skill that they can carry forward. Learning to garden will enable these students to pass that knowledge to their children, making this project extend way beyond just what grows in the garden.
By funding this project you will enable students to know how to test for the essential soil nutrients in their own gardens and learn the basics of vegetable gardening.
These are skills that they can use later on in life. But immediately they will share a sense of pride knowing that the seeds they started will provide a hungry person a nutritious and locally grown meal.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Stetson and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.