Most of us probably know that school gardens are a great teaching tool that can be used to enrich curriculum and improve physical health, but we believe in gardens as a way to grow character.  We see this everyday in our garden.

We see children sharing, working hard, and being kind. We watch kids grow responsibility as well as vegetables. We see kids engaged, excited, motivated, and proud of their school.  We watch as kids make connections between their school, their community, and the planet.

New research published by the Royal Horticulture Society (and who knows gardening better!) shows that as well as helping children lead happier, healthier lives, gardening “helps them acquire the essential skills they need to fulfill their potential in a rapidly-changing world and make a positive contribution to society as a whole.”

In fact, evidence suggests that gardening can play such a vital role that we believe every child should be given the chance to experience the benefits. So we will be sharing what we’ve learned along the way- how to start and maintain a school garden, how gardens create opportunities to embed character education principles, and what kids, teachers, and families have to say about gardening at the 18th National Forum on Character Education.

Our presentation “Where Gardens Grow Character”  on Friday, Oct. 21 at 2:15 will include opportunities to share your school garden stories and you’ll walk away with: a list of gardening resources we’ve found helpful; a bibliography of garden research; and a hand made memento from our beloved garden.

Please join us!  Because gardening in schools is a necessity.

Posted by Susi Jones, Tricia Elisara, Nancy Younce, Julian Elementary School, a 2010 National School of Character

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Students set personal goals at the start of the year.

 A focus on the whole child and each child’s moral and social development pervades the program at Beauvoir the National Cathedral Elementary School, a 2011 National School of Character. The school invests a great deal of time and resources into the “social curriculum,” which is seen as being just as important as, and even part of, the academic curriculum.

All classes spend the first 6 weeks of the school year developing class norms according to the Responsive Classroom methodology. Part of this is the development of class constitutions, contracts, or promises.

Students also set specific personal goals called “hopes and dreams.” Both are posted and referred to regularly in each classroom. During daily morning meetings in each classroom, students greet each other, play a game together, share something of importance to one or more students, and read the morning message.

Even the youngest Beauvoir students start the year with learning the social curriculum in age-appropriate ways. When entering Pre-K, all students are given stuffed bears that they name, make clothes for, and then use for role playing throughout their first two years at Beauvoir. The bears are a tool to teach empathy teachers adapted from the book Bears, Bears, Everywhere by Luella Connelly.

Beauvoir is one of five cathedral schools located in the U.S. and one of three on the beautifully maintained grounds of the National Cathedral located in Washington, DC. Beauvoir is a private primary school, serving preschool aged children through third graders.

Beauvoir will be presenting at the 18th National Forum on Character Education in San Francisco, Oct. 19-22.

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Lesson Plans

Introducing Recycling: Introduce students to the concept of recycling and show them its importance through this reflective and easy-to-implement activity.

Developing Enrichment Toys for Zoo Animals: A more extensive activity that will take some planning and coordination, this plan outlines a science-based activity that has students research animals, their needs, and then design materials to be used in their habitats at the zoo, with the supervision of a zookeeper.

Waves of Life: A fun way to introduce frequency and wavelength properties in a science class while tying the concept to our experiences of emotions.

Promising Practices

Save the Bay: A great example of a school getting involved in an environmental issue of vital importance to their local community by aiming to help initiatives to revitalize the nearby Chesapeake Bay.

Schoolyard Habitats: By developing an outdoor habitat on school grounds, this school got the entire community involved and created a space that can be used for class studies throughout the years to come.

Litter Getters: Each afternoon, one class from this school takes just a few minutes to walk through the school and its yard to pick up trash, thereby keeping the grounds beautiful and getting the students invested in maintaining a clean environment.

Student Recycling Initiative: Started by students, this program aims to educate all students and get the school involved in recycling the correct materials. Now all students and staff participate in the daily collection.

Environmental Club: This student club meets weekly to discuss environmental issues. Each member researches a topic of interest and presents a Powerpoint on the subject, while guest speakers and fundraising activities get the whole school involved in efforts to impact the wider community.

Lil’ Scientists: A unique collaboration between 8th grade science students and local kindergarteners. The 8th graders research topics and come in to the kindergarten classrooms several times throughout the school year to lead a presentation on such age-appropriate lessons as hand-washing and recycling.

We hope these ideas might spark some thoughts for practices to implement within your own school. What Earth Day-related activities is your school already taking part in?

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