KCK Organic Teaching Gardens

Introduction to Garden

What is a garden? Where does our food come from? Why do we have a garden at our school?  What is growing in our garden?  What is “organic?”  What is “native?” How did we build our garden? How will we be involved with the garden at our school?  These questions are raised in discussion with students to identify areas of learning and student’s experiences and knowledge of gardening.  Mentors take students on a tour of the garden and identify the plants growing in our Butterfly Beds, Hummingbird Beds,  See-Smell-Touch Beds, Native Beds, Herbal Beds, and our beds that grow Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Sweet Potatoes, Beans, Gourds, Strawberries, Cotton, and Peanuts. Mentors point out to the student other plants, that have voluntarily started growing in the garden, that we identify as “weeds.” Using a scale map drawing of the garden beds, students break into small groups, and are asked to identify 10 different plants growing in their garden and record them in their garden journals.