I teach at an innovative and award-winning (KN-12th) dual language public charter school in Delaware with a diverse school student population (40% minorities and 50% low-income). All of our students study the Greek language and global studies.
I teach geography, civics, food studies, U.S.
History, and Advanced Placement Human Geography to 9th-12th-grade students. I am also the KN-12th-grade garden coordinator and one of the leaders of the Green Team on campus. Our school is a participant in the Eco-Schools program, and we are currently pursuing five pathways: sustainable foods, waste and consumption, energy, schoolyard habitat, and healthy living. Our Green Team has worked incredibly hard to implement several major projects to educate our students about how to be environmental stewards of our planet. For example, we now have a recycling program, a garden with 24 raised beds, and we recently added 6 Golden Comet hens to our campus.
My Project
I will teach an innovative and interdisciplinary course titled "Food Studies" in the fall. This course examines why food matters and how we can act to support a healthier food system. Our conversations will address issues ranging from resilient agriculture and healthy access to the future of seeds and making most of the available food resources. We will take a multi-faceted approach to food through exposure to excellent writing about food, agricultural, and environmental sustainability; cooking labs that will help students learn through the preparation and tasting of food; and interactions with experts like farmers and other food producers through field trips to local institutions and farms. The students will also learn how to manage a school vegetable garden, how to compost, and how to care for chickens.
I need the two plant light houses to grow vegetables and herbs from seed before transferring them to our vertical garden.
The brightly colored vertical garden of 50 planters will be attached to our chain link fence in our garden with 24 raised beds. As the KN-12th-grade garden coordinator, I have personally witnessed the tremendous value of teaching students about our food system. The herbs grown in the planters will be used in cooking demos for KN-12th-grade students AND they will be included in cafeteria food prepared for students. Additionally, we will donate some of the freshly grown herbs to a local food bank, benefiting 50+ families in need. My students will play a role in combating food insecurity in our community!
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