My students need a chance to make science and real to life experience. These garden kits give students the opportunity to plant, work, and document life cycles first hand.
"Where do hamburgers come from?"..."McDonald's." This is the truth that my students know. I want to bring agriculture and life cycles to my students in a way that will stick with them, and show them that with hard work and understanding they are capable of so much more.
I work in a Title 1 school, where the quote above was spoken specifically to me.
I just recently went through training to incorporate agriculture into the classroom. There is an ever growing necessity to inform students about the impact of agriculture on their life. As a second grade we work on life cycles, and have done several projects that involve watching a seed grow in a bag, then after taking it home it is trashed. I want to offer my students a much more meaningful experience.
With this project I will be able to aid my students in developing, growing and harvesting a small garden at school, from beginning to end. This will take us into a deeper knowledge of not only the life cycle, but skills for growing gardens and understanding that the food we purchase comes from the hard work of people, just like my students. This set of materials will allow us to incorporate science into reading, writing, math and our daily life as elementary students.
My Project
I love watching the faces of students when they begin to understand something. Last year I began incorporating Agriculture in the classroom. I began with a study of farms, dairy and regular. In a discussion one of my students, when asked about where meat comes from, mentioned his favorite fast food restaurant. This reality, that children think that food only comes from a store, saddens me.
We need garden kits to give students the opportunity to plant, work, and document life cycles first hand. Please, help me give my students this hands on experience, as we gain understanding of the world around us and seek to grow into productive citizens. My students are hard workers and will do whatever it takes to understand and learn. With your generosity we will be able to experience the life cycle, and gain a respect for the world around us. We will be able to make this project work across our curriculum and develop, hopefully, a new way of thinking.
This project is important to me, because I want my students to see that the fruit of their labor is so sweet, physically and mentally.
I pray that my students will be able to grow as young learners and develop a sense of responsibility for their work and their community. With your help, we will be able to purchase the tools needed to make this project meaningful and not just another passing science concept.
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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 Mrs. L. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.