Dear Frank,
As we come to the end of the traditional school year, I'd like to thank all the teachers out there who are building a better future by working hand-in-hand with young people. We at EarthBox salute you!
If you're one of the many who continue to work with students in the summer, keep this in mind: the EarthBox and its guides and curricula offer ideal ful-filled, hands-on "green" activities that can teach science, horticulture and team building skills to kids -- while also putting food on the table. If you haven't already, we encourage you to take a look at what we have to offer.
Enjoy your summer, and happy gardening!
Molly Philbin
Education Director
EarthBox, Inc.
Celebrating Earth Day
This past Earth Day (April 22), the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois brought in a group of 40 fifth-grade students from Bret Harte Elementary School to help upgrade an exhibit called "Smart Home: Green + Wired, Powered by ComEd."
This modular three-story home is located literally in the Museum's backyard. It showcases the various ways that green living can easily be integrated into the typical household, and is touted as the city's "greenest home." Well, the kids from Harte Elementary helped make it greener, as they assisted master gardeners in planting 80+ EarthBoxes with vegetables, herbs and flowers. The EarthBoxes will green tte patio rooftop, as well as the garden on the ground.
The plan is for the students to maintain the planters and care for the plants over the next few months. The students will be connected with kids from a sister school in an underdeveloped country by means of The Growing Connection, where they'll track their progress, and exchange gardening stories and growing tips.
To see the junior horticulturalists in action, take a look at this local news video clip.
The California Instructional
School Garden Initiative
We commend the California Instructional School Garden Initiative (CISGI), and in particular the Los Angeles Unified School District's (LAUSD) efforts to provide a learning garden for every school in the city. The 30 teachers who selected EarthBox this year will receive excellent training opportunities, and EarthBoxes with curriculum instructions for their classrooms.
Kudos to Teacher Advisor Tonya Mandl, who organizes the LAUSD training sessions.
"I started this program with LAUSD by coordinating a state grant, for the district," says Tonya. "We have over 500 participating schools. Though the program ends in June, I will continue to support L.A. school gardens as the chair of the California School Garden Network, Los Angeles Chapter."
The CISGI began in 1996. The program and the participating schools are supported by the California School Garden Network.
"I thought I would post some pictures from one of the schools I work with in Mississippi. This is a courtyard garden that the special education and gifted students work and maintain. Notice the EarthBoxes!" (Click on the photo to see more)
Gardendoc from Biloxi, MS
Pennsylvania DOE
For those of you in the Keystone State, here's a funding opportunity you should try: the Pennsylvania Department of Education is offering a grant to help schoolkids become more active. For more information about the grant, as well as the forms needed to apply, click here. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Karen Beitzel at the Center for Schools and Communities at kbeitzel@csc.csiu.org, or by calling 717-763-1661.
The guidelines for applying for the grant state that a school may propose its own physical activity program, as long as the program provides a minimum of 30-60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity each day, per the guidelines of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Therefore, schools interested in the installation of EarthBox Instructional School Gardens could include the gardening component along with a pedometer and aerobic exercise as part of the healthy food program. The result: a lifestyle change that includes healthy food and exercise in a program that also ties into their standards-based studies.
Good luck, everyone!
Did you know that many European immigrants who farmed in their native land started gardens in our country by tasting the soil to see if it were sweet? This taste test actually had science behind it: they were checking the pH range, which determines a plant's ability to take up nutrients. Americans laughed at them until their gardens produced bumper crops!
The patented EarthBox was developed by commercial farmers and proven in the lab and on the farm. Our maintenance-free, award-winning, high-tech growing system controls soil conditions, eliminates guesswork, and more than doubles the yield of a conventional garden -- with less fertilizer, less water, and virtually no effort. It's used successfully on a daily basis by commercial farmers, educators, and consumers. Distributors are also finding it to be a popular growing system.
EarthBox is a remarkably easy-to-set-up system that can be used to grow produce virtually anywhere.åÊOur systems have been incorporated into community gardens all over the world, enabling families and neighbors to share fresh produce while minimizing work and expenses.
EarthBoxesåÊalso make excellent additions toåÊthe classroom. Our Pre-K through 12th grade standards-based curriculum support packages can bring science to life, with hands-on lessons that teach principles of growing and nutrition, utilizing the scientific method in student-driven experiments.
Visit our Education Programs page to learn more.