An organic school garden …coming into being
Nektarios TsagliotisTeacher-Researcher, 9th Primary School of Rethymno &
University of Crete ([email protected])
An initial school garden plan (2007)
An improved school garden plan (2008)
Wooden raised beds Built raised beds Compost chambers
Main entrance
Raised level garden
Greenhouse
Pond
Area: ~ 210 m2
This is how the place looked like in the beginning …not very promising …
August 2006 ...
School garden 2009-2010
First things first … building a fence and basic infrastructure with rain water drainage facilities (a)
First things first … building a fence and basic infrastructure with rain water drainage facilities (b)
Putting up the fence net …
Building up raised beds outside the fence for climbing plants … struggling with lots of soil all over the place
Building up the main corridor … a pathway to the garden
… measuring and arranging the base of the raised beds to be built
The first raised beds are being built …
Some soil is put inside the raised beds … and the watering pipes in between the gravel corridors are established
Time for action …!!! Planting the climbing plants on the garden fence with grade 6 children
More soil to be put inside the raised beds …come on, stand in the row and help … (a)
More soil to be put inside the raised beds …come on, stand in the row and help … (b)
Planting some vegetables … in May 2007… our first attempt to grow plants in the raised beds
Consortium of Countries and Schools of Comenius 1 Project“Solar Energy: Awareness & Action”
Escola AntréSoares Norte,
Braga
Colexio de Educación Infantil
e PrimariaFroebel, Galicia,
Pontevedra
Stella Maris College Junior
School
Scuola Secondaria di 1° Drado C.B. Cavour, Catania,
Sicilia
9th Primary school of Rethymno
Consortium of Countries and Schools of Comenius 1 Project“Solar Energy: Awareness & Action”
http://9dim-rethymn.reth.sch.gr/contents_en/Downloads/SEAA_Project%20Activities_2005-2008.pdf
Experimenting with a greenhouse model out of a cardboard box …
Constructing greenhouse models
Testing greenhouse models out in the school yard
Preparing seed plants for our small greenhouses set up in the garden … (a)
Preparing seed plants for our small greenhouses set up in the garden … (b)
Greenhouses … in action
Greenhouses … in action
Transplanting the seed plants in the raised beds
April 2008 …
Transplanting the seed plants in the raised beds
April 2008 …
Our plants are growing inside the raised beds
early May 2008 …
Our plants are growing inside the raised beds
late May 2008 …
This year we aimed high … for a bigger and permanent greenhouse
… and this is what we obtained (3,8 x 2,5 m)
Setting up the ground for the base of the greenhouse …
Setting up the base of the greenhouse …
Teachers’ group work in assembling the greenhouse …
December 2008 …
Teachers’ group work in assembling the greenhouse …
Teachers’ group work in assembling the greenhouse …
The finished greenhouse in its place …
The greenhouse … houses the seed-plants
The greenhouse … houses the seed-plants
The greenhouse … houses the seed-plants
Biodiversity … plants for important medical drugs
We get used to the idea of creating a garden ecosystem … our microcosmos !!!
We get used to the idea of creating a garden ecosystem … our microcosmos !!!
The first compound microscope circa 1595
Zacharias Janssen
circa 1580-1638
Middelburg microscope circa 1595
This inquiry is part of the research work undertaken by the Greek group for the HIPST project (History and Philosophy of Science in Science Teaching), which is funded within the 7th framework program, science in society-2007-2.2.1.2 - teaching methods (cf. URL: < http://hipst.eled.auth.gr >).
R. Hooke’s micrographia (1665)
Jardine, L. (2004). The curious life of Robert Hooke. HarperCollins Publishers Inc.: NY.
The microscope with 2 lenses …
Istituto e Museo di StoriaDella Scienza
Science Laboratory for Primary Education
The microscope with 3 lenses …
Istituto e Museo di StoriaDella Scienza
Science Laboratory for Primary Education
Octavo presentation of Micrographia
The worksheets on the seeds of thyme & petunias
The worksheet on the seeds of thyme
These pretty fruits here represented, in the 18. Scheme, are nothing else, but nine several seeds of Tyme; they are all of them in differing posture, both as to the eye and the light; nor are they all of them exactly of the same shape, there being a great variety both in the bulk and figure of each seed; but they all agreed in this, that being look'd on with a Microscope, they each of them exactly resembled a Lemmon or Orange dry'd; and this both in shape and colour. Some of them are a little rounder, of the shape of an Orange, as A and B, they have each of them a very conspicuous part by which they were join'd to their little stalk, and one of them had a little piece of stalk remaining on; the opposite side of the seed, you may perceive very plainly by the Figure, is very copped and prominent, as is very usual in Lemmons; which prominencies are express'd in D, E and F. …
A photo of seeds of thyme
Texts & drawings about the seeds of thyme
We observe that the A seed is a round one, whereas the B seed is somehow long, but the Γ seed is half and miserable.
Texts & drawings about the seeds of thyme
The thyme seeds look nearly the same under the microscope and the naked eye. Some have bumps and others have peaks and they look like lemons, oranges, olives and some look like “choco pop” cereals. Most of them have some small “bumps” than others who have “scratches”. Most with the scratches look like nuts, whereas those with bumps look like the skin of a rotten orange and their colour is black brown or brown with black.
Texts & drawings about the seeds of thyme
The seeds of thyme remind me of lemons or oranges. They are all in different position. There is a great variety in the volume and shape of the seeds. The seeds under the microscope have a black or a brown colour. The seeds are nosey or common like lemons. Every time we observe things they are not as we see them. The seeds look bigger and different than we see them with the naked eye. Thus, we should never say we see something unless we observe it with other methods like the microscope etc.
Planting the with the pomegranate tree 2nd grade children
Planting a raised bed with vegetables, 5th grade children
Planting a raised bed with vegetables, 5th grade children
Planting a raised bed with vegetables, 5th grade children
At the raised bed of spinach and parsley
At the raised bed with cauliflower & rocket
At the raised bed with salads & red cabbages
Spinach … party
Spinach … party
Spinach … party
Spinach … party
Spinach … party
… spinach with rise
… basic idea… and some
more …
Bottle biology … decomposition column
… the basic idea
… home composters
Building up a two compartment compost chamber …
Starting a compost chamber … with a few layers
… this is what we did, let’s see how ...
… at the Science Laboratory for Primary Education (SLPE), 9th Primary School of Rethymno, Crete, Greece
This is the group for starting the compost chamber …
… let’s see the process from the beginning
The children want to have a try …
… Demetrius is giving it a go
The “green fruit” of our effort …
… well done!!!
Time to take it to the compost chamber …
… let’s go composting
Into the compost chamber it goes too ..
… spreading it all around
… spreading it all around
And now, more soil into the compost compartment…
Inside the compost compartment that is …
… OK, we know what to do now
The compost compartment from top …
… looking good
Watering the compost pile …
… Helen, Katerina and Alta are watering the
compost pile
It appears we have finished … for the moment
… more layers to be added soon
Children of the third grade continue …
… one more layer of greens
Children of the third grade continue …
… at the compost
Children of the third grade continue …
… spread them nicely
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… preparation
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… digging the parterres
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… preparation for planting
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… planting at the parterres
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… planting at the parterres
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… end of planting
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… protection for cats
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… a group work for adding some extra soil at the potato
roots
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… a group work for adding some extra soil at the potato
roots
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… commenting on the result
Planting potatoes at the wooden raised beds …
… the final result
Potatoes … excavation
… we will start in a minute
Potatoes … excavation
… let’s line up for the process
Potatoes … excavation
… some help from the teacher
Potatoes … excavation
… where are those potatoes???
Potatoes … excavation
Oh, there is one!!!
Potatoes … excavationThe production of one raised bed
Wait … those go to the compost … OK???
Potatoes … excavation
… leaving everything nice and tidy for the next class
I do not know whether we could have a garden in every school ...
... but there is definitely a school in every garden!
Thank you for your attention