Lettuce Grow Our Own!
Kindergarten students at Walgrove Elementary School love planting lettuce and eating it!
Walgrove kindergarten kids enjoying the lettuce they grew in the planter box outside their classroom
Photos (1)
Photos
This week my son’s kindergarten class at Walgrove Elementary made a garden fresh salad from the lettuce the students planted eight weeks ago in the planter box right outside their classroom.
“We reviewed some of the ways we buy salads—in plastic bags and boxes—and found that we could rather easily grow our own fresh vegetables that tasted a lot better," said Ruth Handel, a kindergarten parent and volunteer who helped the kids with the planting and the harvest. "Being involved directly in the process, from mixing up the dirt and planting the seedlings, to watering, harvesting and preparation took away the mystery and put the ability in the children’s hands.”
Parent volunteers make this possible at our school, as they do at schools all throughout the neighborhood. At Walgrove, a handful of dedicated green-thumb parents were not satisfied with the vegetable garden they’ve been helping kids to tend in a back corner of the schoolyard.
They had a vision that would bring the garden even closer to the students, and to do that they brought raised bed garden plots to strategic locations, right outside the doors of many classrooms so that kids would feel a greater sense of connection and ownership to the plants.
It seems to be working. Students enjoy seeing the plants grow, and are responsible about tending to them. In the process they are learning about where food comes from and how to choose healthy foods. It’s amazing how much more excited children are about eating something that they helped to grow.
“There was a terrific feeling of community and pride around the salad," said Handel. "They nearly all wolfed down the fresh greens and additional vegetable and bean ‘fixings’ and proclaimed that they were the world’s biggest salad lovers. I doubt they feel the same about a clump of browning iceberg out of a bag.”
Emiko Kuwata, a parent who leads the garden volunteer team at Walgrove, has spearheaded the expansion of the school’s gardening education. She helped launch a food waste composting program at the campus by having parents go to each class to read a book on composting to students and answer questions about why composting is important and how it works.
The student council has taken over leadership of the composting program. These fourth- and fifth-graders help the younger kids sort their food waste in the cafeteria, and they carry the compost to the school garden.
Now Kuwata and the garden team are planning to expand the planter box program right into the cafeteria, by building more boxes next to the lunch tables. They’re applying for grants to help fund the project, which will also encourage kids to think about what they are eating and to take pride in growing their own food. Any overages will be donated to a local food bank.
“I really enjoy gardening and I think it empowers the children to do it themselves,” Kuwata said.
She added that she heard recently from one of the teachers of kids with autism that her students are really benefiting from the gardening and compost projects. Sorting is one of the tasks they work on in their classroom and separating compost from recycling and trash allows the kids to apply those skills in a real-life way.
Although Jamie Oliver hasn’t managed to persuade the LAUSD to let him into its schools with his cameras rolling, parents in our neighborhood are leading a concerted effort to improve students’ food knowledge by helping them grow their own and reducing waste by composting. In the process, kids are learning that cultivating their own food is fun and what sprouts tastes better than store bought.
Do you think all schools should have their own vegetable gardens?
Tell us in the comments.
Janice Carr
7:55 am on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Another great kid- friendly activity your readers would enjoy is to grow a TickleMe Plant from seeds and then watching the plant MOVE when Tickled! As a first grade teacher I no longer plant Lima beans, as the growing of this interactive plant, proved to be much more exciting and educational for my student's.
I found my supplies for a classroom kit at http://www.ticklemeplant.com but they also sell individual greenhouses and even party favors, with everything you need to grow your own TickleMe Plant from seeds. I assure you your kids will be more excited about gardening, and its just fun to watch the expressions of the faces of children (and even adults) when they see the plant close its leaves and droop when tickled.
lisa haase
10:26 am on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
So great! Thank you for sharing this.
Mark Sim
11:24 am on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Gladwell in his book, "Outliers" mentions that farming teaches delayed gratification... a much needed lesson in today's instant world.
Kelly Hartog
11:36 am on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
So true, Mark. There is something wonderful about growing your own produce. I have an entire herb garden and tomatoes (my peas died, though).
Michelle Birnkrant Dean
2:43 pm on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Great article and such an inspiration for all of our local public schools!
Sherri Akers
4:22 pm on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
The Learning Garden at Walgrove Elementary School is going to be on the Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase tour on April 30th! Watch for the post to go up soon at www.marvistagreengardenshowcase.com
john printy
5:09 pm on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
I think that these young school kids in this artical, sounds to me did a very good job in growing this garden for there class, and i also think too that it will teach these young kids to be self sefishant when they get older, and it will also I think teach kids how to be good staurds of the planet, and also teach them to grow there own food someday, and to me this is an amazing artical for everyone good job mar vista patch
Emiko Kuwata
9:43 pm on Wednesday, March 9, 2011
I must give credit to parent Laura Groppe who has been spearheading the wonderful garden beds right outside the classrooms. There are so many others who help make gardens happen at our school. Thank you to all of you.
Brooke Wirtschafter
8:33 am on Thursday, March 10, 2011
Emiko, you are so right. Laura Groppe has worked tirelessly to bring in the planter boxes, gardening with the students and doing all kinds of work to beautify our campus.
Jeanne Kuntz
10:18 am on Thursday, March 10, 2011
Growing vegetables and herbs, along with all the other pluses mentioned in the comments, gets kids eating more vegetables and more varieties, which often gets whole families involved in healthy eating choices. Even a few plants can make a difference. I am so glad Walgrove will be on the Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase this year!
Mark Sim
10:51 am on Thursday, March 10, 2011
So, is Emiko going to head up the urban 4H club at Walgrove?
john printy
7:56 pm on Thursday, March 10, 2011
Yes I really do think that these schools should have vegetable gardens like this of what walgrove Elementery has done, I think too that this will altimitley teach kids how to grow there own food, and also would teach these kids about Gardening, and on how to grow things, so yes I do think its a wonderful Idea for these kids to learn this sort of thing, because I think its an Idea that will take these kids into the future, and teach them how to be selfishinant, and to someday help to feed there own familys one day...
Brooke Wirtschafter
9:13 am on Friday, March 11, 2011
I love that, Mark. I think Emiko absolutely needs to start a 4H club at Walgrove. Next addition: chickens, followed by goats and a milk cow.
john printy
2:54 pm on Friday, March 11, 2011
Id like to do a follow up, on this story, a 4,H club sounds good for walgrove, but chickens, and a diary cow at the school, IM not too sure people living around walgrove IM sure would frown upon that, that being with the smell, and I think that the health department would have something to say about that, I mean a 4,H club dose sound good for the school, but having live animals at the school I do not think would be a good idea, because of the surrounding Homes in the area, If mar vista was like out in the country that would be a whole different story all together........