Soil Moving Day

What an amazing day! The weather was not only gorgeous, but the amount of teamwork and collaboration to get this part of the journey completed was awesome. 

Thank you again to Home Lumber, W3, and Walton Sand and Gravel for the contributions to the LINCSgarden. 

And the finished product ready for planting (beginning next week). 

Indoor Growing

The beans the am 4K class have been observing have germinated and leaves have formed in many. We documented their growth as they hung in our classroom window. 

The PM 4K teacher, Ann Lamb, has started the hydroponics garden in our classroom. Below, the AM students watch as the water cycles through each of the containers. We are currently growing various green leafy vegetables such as kale and lettuce. 

Students are spending time exploring and reading garden catalogs and making great plans for the LINCS garden. Many classes will be moving the soil into the new beds on Wednesday and some seeds will be sown directly into the soil as early as next week. 

Beds are Built!!

Hip Hip Hooray for teamwork!! The garden beds have been completed and are just waiting for the soil (which will be delivered by Walton Sand and Gravel later this week). Many thanks go out to Walton Sand and Gravel, to the collaborative effort of multiple families and staff members at LINCS, as well as to W3 and Home Lumber for their donations. And a huge thank you to Liesl Schultz Hying, a community member and Americorps Farm to School/Eat Here, Eat Well volunteer who helped bring this idea to life. This is definitely a community effort. 

Continued support and help are needed as we move forward. A donation form for seed donations will come out soon. We will also need some help early next week when it's time to plant the cool weather seeds in the beds. And more information will be sent out regarding summer duties. 

The photos below are a combined effort of Bob Mishka, Jo Baker, Jen Kapfer, Maggie Radij and Liesl Shultz Hying. 

Yay for growth!!!!

Here are the plants at the UW-Whitewater greenhouse that multiple classrooms of students at LINCS planted.  Building of the raised beds is tomorrow morning at 9:00 am. Hope to see you there. 

Seedlings

Yippee!!!  Our seeds are starting to sprout. They are currently being housed at the UW-Whitewater greenhouse. They will stay there until they are big enough and it is warm enough for them to be planted in the raised beds at LINCS. 

 

Mrs. Frye's 4K Students

 

Two students work together to add water to our miniature greenhouse which is growing a bean seed. 

 

Students investigate how water travels up a stem. 

Seeds are planted with Ms. Liesl. 

Students check out their hard work. 

 

Students learn about the plant life cycle by sequencing illustrations based on what they are seeing as their bean seeds are growing. 

Farm To School

We are starting a school garden at LINCS with the help of a Whitewater community member and AmeriCorps Farm to School volunteer, Liesl Shultz Hying. Liesl, along with a group of dedicated families and teachers at LINCS, are working together and the dream of a school garden has become a reality.

What an exciting time at LINCS. Many classrooms are beginning to learn more about gardening, plants, living and non-living things, and just where our food comes from as a result of this project. We are working together with various community businesses and programs, writing letters, and making amazing connections.

Donations have been sought, seeds were planted by LINCS students and are already growing at the UW-Whitewater greenhouse, raised beds will be constructed this Saturday morning, and soil will be delivered next week. This idea has quickly come to fruition.

Check back for updates and photos as we embark on this amazing journey.

Good things happen when communities work together. Amazing things happen when they garden together. To read more about what happens when students start gardening click http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/02/18/hands-in-the-dirt-learning.html

For more information about the Farm to School Program, click here http://www.farmtoschool.org/