MDC Students Bring Gardens and Worms to Public Schools

Miami Dade College Students Bring Gardens and Worms to Public Schools
Submitted by Real Food Challenge on Mon, 09/29/2008 - 19:08.

in spotlight student garden

September 27, 2008

Miami, FL-- On a sweltering hot Saturday, twenty people gathered behind a junior high school. Three students shoveled soil and compost into a new garden bed, while others removed basil, pepper and tomato plants from their pots to place in the fresh soil. Others held boards of wood while a teacher from Miami Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) nailed the boards together.

Teachers and future educators came together to plant a garden and share ideas about how to bring healthy eating and an awareness of the origins of food to their students. The workshop, part of the Real Food Now! Month of Action, was sponsored by the Earth Ethics Institute at Miami Dade College (MDC) and is the continuation of a long-standing partnership between MDC and MDCPS. "This was my first time planting--now I can plant my own herb garden! And it'll be easy to integrate into my lesson plans," said MDC student Marilyn Morejon.

For the past four years, the Earth Ethics Institute's Organic Gardens Program has been working with MDCPS teachers to support their efforts to bring real food to the classroom. Each year teachers plant gardens with their students, selecting culturally appropriate foods that students might be accustomed to eating at home, as well as introducing new herbs and vegetables. The garden is then incorporated into all aspects of the curriculum--students measure and chart plant growth, interview family members and record family recipes to share with classmates, and learn about the nutrient cycle through the practice of daily composting. MDCPS teachers look forward to getting started on their gardens. As teacher Elizabeth Hernandez said, "I'm really excited to make worm bins with my students!"

This year, MDC student leaders with Future Educators of America are also getting involved. Students who plan to teach a wide range of subjects from science to social studies have chosen to do their service learning in the garden. They meet MDCPS teachers and their classes throughout the semester to help build gardens, germinate seeds, plant, weed, and harvest. Together with teachers, MDC students are empowering kids to grow their own real food!