This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
Students learn best by seeing and DOING. When students "do" turn their left over fruit and vegetable waste from the cafeteria into rich compost they will feel empowered and also develop their understanding of composting process including how food breaks down and can be "reused" as nutrients in soil.
Our students are from a high poverty/high crime urban area.
Most have no gardens at home and if they do are not safe to spend time outdoors. Our school has a courtyard surrounded on all sides by our school building so it provides for a safe outdoor setting. We are creating raised garden beds so students can observe plants and their life cycles. We are also trying to teach students the importance of reducing waste and reusing as much as possible. They have little practical experience with this. The city does not offer recycling bins to homes; and many families don't have cars to drive their recycling to a center. So their only recycling/reusing experiences tend to be at our school. I host an environmental club after school hours that has maintained worm vermicompost bins for the past two years. We share our work with classrooms. But the amount of waste that we can feed to the worms is limited. They don't need all the scraps that we produce from serving 900 students breakfast/lunch daily.
My Project
Your donation of two bins would allow us to invite classrooms to recycle/reuse their fruit cores and rinds and uneaten fresh vegetables. Students will learn by doing what exactly happens to return nutrients to soil to produce healthy, rich soil (something very definitely lacking in our community!). They will smell how wonderful good healthy smells. They will observe the rich growth of our garden because we are able to provide without expense a rich environment for our plants.
This project is important because if engages students in learning that will be meaningful to them; keeping science learning fun.
The materials are not in the realm of our limited budget; but their inclusion will be rewarding for students and our gardens.
Nearly all students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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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. Breitberg NBCT and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
