I recently came across a quote from Jane Goodall.
"You cannot get through a day without having an impact on the world around you." As I sat and thought about what that means for me as an individual, I realized that Jane Goodall's words reflect on what we have been discovering in sustainability so far this year.
Lower elementary has been studying what it means for something to be from the earth, a natural resource. This study has led us on many scavenger hunts searching for these resources. This past week, the students made a connection that even many man-made objects once came from natural resources. Through this discovery, we talked about what it means to take care of our natural resources and how we can do that at school and at home.
Last week we looked at plant life cycles and planted our own seeds to be able to observe what truly happens.
This week we dove into different parts of a plant and why each one is important.
Since planting our seeds, students have been able to see a few begin to sprout! I'm so grateful to see their excitement through the growing process.
Upper elementary began the year studying recycling and composting, which naturally led us into our study of soil. Over the last few weeks we've been learning about what soils are made up of and how different nutrients and ingredients can either be beneficial or harmful to particular plants. They experimented mixing soils to see which was best for growing seeds and different plant cuttings. Students have taken soil samples and tested different properties and calculated drainage rates for soil types in preparation for planting in our lovely garden beds.
We enjoyed our hard work of planting by making fresh lavender and mint tea, both of which were grown here at DGS.
Middle School has been diving into what sustainability is and how it is not just an ecological problem. Our goal for this year is to tie sustainability into the world around us.
We started this off by measuring different heights of trees on campus and determining their size. After doing this, we worked together as a group to apply for a NASA Space Tree. This is a seedling that has been into space and orbited around the moon. How cool is that!! Measuring the heights of trees and knowing what they need to be successful, allowed us to better prepare for the application process, and gave us a way to envision what our space tree could grow to be.
After every class, I leave with a grateful heart. I'm grateful that students are so curious, adventurous, and eager to learn. May they always keep their wonder.
Ms. Emily
Comments