Vision

Our class has been engaged in a project designing a new and improved outdoor classroom for our school. Part of their vision was having more learning gardens. They began learning about healthy soil and different types of gardens. Then they became particularly interested in growing fruits and vegetables and began learning about how to make a healthy food garden grow. They also wanted to create an herb garden.

Action

The students’ first attempt at an herb garden was unsuccessful, with some herbs not growing at all, and others dying soon after beginning to grow. They began to learn all about plant growth to find out what went wrong, and they realized that not only did their plants need more consistent sunlight and watering, but they also needed more nutrients in the soil. So, they began to learn about how to create compost that could provide the necessary nutrients to help their plants grow.

They learned about different ways to compost, and experimented with three different methods in the classroom: vermicomposting with Red Wiggler composting worms, vermicomposting with garden worms, and composting using an electric composter (this is what we bought with our LSF Grant). They were impressed with the speed at which they could produce compost with the electric composter, and were excited to use it in their next gardening attempt. However, when they weighed and tracked the amount of food that they were composting every day, they noticed that they were not even close to filling the composter, so they wanted more. At this point, they planted some new seeds (herbs, fruits, and vegetables), and then they set out to get more compost.

Each classroom at our school has a composting bin, however, the students knew that most of the classes in the 12 portables found composting to be difficult, with some not composting at all because of the smell and worry about rodents coming in (which has happened in previous years). There was also a lot of compostable material that ended up contaminating the recycling bins. Our students wanted to solve the portables’ compost challenges for good and at the same time create a sustainable way to produce more compost for their gardens. First, they reached out to other classes with a letter, to ask them to contribute their compost to the cause. When they did not get the results that they wanted right away, they realized that they had to make their plans clearer and their requests easier. They also decided that they could be more convincing in person. They created and practiced very heartfelt presentations and pitched their composting project to the other portable classes. They explained which items could be composted, created reference posters for each class, provided recycled and reusable composting containers for each class, and then talked about the importance of not only diverting waste from landfills but actually being able to use their own food waste to grow more food. They spoke with great passion and excitement, overcoming all of their fears because their excitement and passion won out over their nerves. Everyone signed up to present, even to the much older intermediate classes. And it worked! They continued to weigh their compost each day to track their progress, and one student took it upon himself to graph the data. The students were so excited when they saw the graph, because directly after their presentations, there was a huge increase in the amount of compost that they were making. They saw the real impact that their presentations had made. Now the electric composter is full every day, and none of that waste is ending up in the garbage (or contaminating the recycling bins)!

This week, several of their new seeds had sprouted enough to pot up and eventually be brought outside. The students were ready! They weighed their compost and found that they had created 1510 grams of compost in one month! They researched how much to incorporate into the soil and then set to work potting up their seedlings. They actually have so much compost (and more coming in every day), that they are going to use it not only to provide nutrients for their own plants, but for the school gardens as well.

Reflection & Celebration

The students are so proud of themselves. They diverted food waste away from landfills, they reduced recycling contamination, they grew plants successfully, they contributed to our school gardens, and they taught 12 portables worth of students to compost and be part of a project to create change. They are also pretty certain that it won’t stop there. They convinced the other classes to be part of the project because they made them care about it, and if they care about it, they might share with their own families at home. My students hope that they have been convincing enough to create a domino effect, where eventually the wider school community may take part. The gardens are for everyone, so everyone can know that they were a part of growing the food that they will be sharing.

It was magical watching the kids’ eyes light up throughout this process, as they saw how much change they can make in the world, and how much good they can do. Here is one of my favourite things that a student said while we were planting this week: “I can’t believe that I just changed the world.”