Ontario school enjoys new gardening experience, thanks to Fiddleheads and Plant A Seed & See What Grows
Thanks to a local health food store and the Plant a Seed & See What Grows Foundation, St. John’s-Kilmarnock School in Breslau, Ontario, is excited to be creating a special gardening zone in the lower school playground, mounting a green wall, and upgrading its overall garden resources.
Over 400 K-12 students in St. John’s-Kilmarnock School will be engaged in the seed-to-table growing cycle to have their natural curiosities heightened. The school’s primary goal is to incorporate fresh produce into its school meal program. A secondary goal is to allow student experimentation and inquiry with plant life. Students in grade 12 will also have access to the garden for lab work. Seeds harvested from the garden will be donated to local seed libraries.
The project has been made possible by a $5,000 joint funding grant from Plant a Seed & See What Grows Foundation and natural health product retailer Fiddleheads Health and Nutrition in Kitchener, Ontario.
“On behalf of the St. John’s-Kilmarnock School community, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to Kim Boril, Jennifer Arsenault, the dedicated staff at Fiddleheads Health and Nutrition, and the generous Plant a Seed & See What Grows Foundation,” said stated Cheryl Boughton, head of school at St. John’s-Kilmarnock. “Together, they have played an integral role in the development of this exceptional learning program. We take immense pride in our teachers’ commitment to nurturing a sense of curiosity, sparking inquiry, and encouraging exploration through innovative tools like our school garden.”
Kim, who co-owns Fiddleheads along with Jennifer, says, “we’re delighted to participate in this project with the Plant a Seed Foundation. Because of our connections with the community, the highly motivated school staff and alumni parents, such as myself, it made sense for us to contribute so that the school garden grows, and more students have access to this opportunity.”
“We, too, are excited by this project as it meets several of Plant a Seed’s goals to support school gardens, outdoor learning experiences, and seed preservation,” said Regina Nebrida, who oversees programs and services for Plant A Seed. “We are always grateful and enthused when a local natural health retailer demonstrates leadership in helping their communities. We would like to invite more community-driven natural health retailers to join us to in captivating the minds and hearts of students through their local school gardens!”
For more information on how to help start a school garden, please contact Regina at regina@seewhatgrows.org. Or to raise funds for a school garden, visit the foundation’s page: seewhatgrows.org.
Experiential learning in school gardens
Experiential learning refers to an engaged learning process where students learn by doing. These hands-on activities outside the classroom often include the exploration of nature, especially the immediate surroundings. This makes school gardens a perfect venue for such learning.
A school garden offers a range of benefits through hands-on learning:
accelerates learning
improves knowledge retention
engages emotions and sense of sense of gratification