in the fall of 2019
I was suddenly removed from the Kiser building after 13 years, and would no longer be able to take students out into the garden for therapy or provide experiences for children in the garden. However, I refused to abandon the very children who had helped bring this garden space into a beautiful area that everyone in the building enjoyed, so I developed my own nonprofit. That way, I could return to the garden after my school hours were worked. With that in mind, I decided I needed to take on a new role, separate from being a Dayton Public School employee.
While developing my nonprofit in the fall and winter of 2019, I had a Garden Club with as many students like myself and a volunteer could handle. We had so much fun!
Thanks to a friend who loves Monarchs (Janalyn Deeter) this past fall, we found 14 monarch caterpillars in the milkweed of our native prairie area. The garden club students were responsible for taking care of these caterpillars in their classrooms. Their entire class was able to watch the caterpillars go through their phases, and when they hatched, they wished them a safe journey as the garden club students set them free.
Other activities included:
- decorating pumpkins using only natural items from the garden
- learning about the different parts of a plant as well as what they do
- collecting seeds to plant in the spring
- tasting fresh food taken from our garden
- learning about healthy eating habits
- learning how to identify vegetables and flowers in the garden
- completing scavenger hunts in teams for flowers, herbs, and vegetables.
- making stepping stones with our art teacher for the garden
- learning about all the lessons inherent in a garden
In the spring we are hoping to:
- learn about bees and pollinators,
- clean up the garden and prepare beds for planting,
- learn about our soil and why it’s important to prepare it.
- plant the garden beds with herbs, vegetables, and flowers.
- And hopefully, learn lots of lessons from the garden!
