Over the next few weeks, families can expect to see a great deal of landscaping work just west of the Clark Fine Arts Center. Crews are in the midst of building FPD’s new educational gardens. The new gardens will provide a hands-on learning environment for our lower and middle school students. Each elementary class and middle school grade will have their own raised bed planter to grow a variety of annuals, perennials, herbs, and vegetables. The focal point will be a cross-shaped water feature where middle school students will study water ecosystems.
Specific uses of the garden will be:
- Science classes – parts of a plant; pollination; water eco-systems; soil study; states of matter; life cycle of plants; plant adaptations; seed study; five senses; leaf study; seasons; abiotic vs. biotic factors; identifying food webs/chains; identifying symbiotic and parasitic relationships; and measuring water quality factors like temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen
- Bible studies
- Butterfly and insect study (worms, spiders)
- Grandparents’ Day gift
- Teacher Appreciation Day gift
- Bouquets for mission-related projects
- Seed swapping
- Flower pressing
- Growing herbs
The gardens are a much anticipated addition to our campus and made possible by Annual Fund dollars along with a grant from the E.J. Grassmann Trust.
The gardens are scheduled to be ready for planting a few weeks after spring break.
