Grade 4 students at École Campbelltown are getting their hands dirty by planting seeds to fill three newly purchased garden towers. The towers are being used to help students apply their knowledge of plant science and to foster a lifelong appreciation for local and healthy foods.
For the past two years, students at the school have tended an outdoor garden that produces turnips, beets and tomatoes during the warmer months. Now, thanks to a $3,600 grant from the Dow Canada Community Investment program, École Campbelltown students are able to grow fresh produce year round.
"The towers will live in our Grade 4 classrooms where students are learning about plant structures and their various growth cycles," says Elissa Corsi, the principal of École Campbelltown. "The towers will complement what students are learning in class through a hands-on learning approach to gardening. Ultimately, I think these towers will help teach our learners about the food they eat, where it comes from and the resources required to grow it skills that will serve them well, throughout their lives."
The towers are being cared for by both the Grade 4 students and students in the Gardening Club. Once ready to harvest, the food will be used by students and distributed throughout the school community. Students have already begun to plant tomatoes, leafy greens and herbs. Other fruits and vegetables planned for the towers include strawberries, peppers, cucumbers, garlic and beans ingredients needed for a balanced, nutritional plate.
"Our students are so excited about the garden towers and looking forward to when they can be harvested," says Corsi. "Our Grade 5 and Grade 6 students are particularly eager. They will use the food grown as ingredients during their Career and Technology Foundations option a new cooking course called Iron Chef Campbelltown."
The project is made possible thanks to the Dow Canada Community Investment program, which provides funding to projects that contribute to the success of local communities to make them better places to live and work.
École Campbelltown serves approximately 525 students in Kindergarten to Grade 6 offering a French Immersion program supported by the fine arts. Located in Sherwood Park, the school is one of 25 elementary schools within Elk Island Public Schools. For more information about the school visit www.campbelltown.ca.
