Building Leadership Skills With Technology

In a changing world that is saturated with technology it is important that student learn to present their ideas about issues important to them using technology. Our environmental club would like to use technology to teach the rest of the school about the benefits and effects of caring for the environment. The students will be building a container garden and using technology to demonstrate to the rest of the school what they have learned about the importance of environmental stewardship.

Update (January 24, 2012)

Well since last spring the courtyard at Lake Avenue has had a facelift thanks to Lowes. It looks more beautiful than ever and they have added a new garden space specifically for the grade threes to grow and observe a variety of fruits of vegetables.
Last spring we planted the three sisters in containers donated by Venture Green. We grew a green beans, lima beans, one squash, and a pumpkin. We will be using the seeds from these fruits and vegetables to plant this year. The grade threes have been learning how important it is to be able to sustain ourselves as well as the importance of taking care of the eco systems in our soil.
The document camera we purchased has been used to examine the changes in plants and seeds. The document camera has also been used to examine and highlight great student work, take photos, and present information.

Update (January 25, 2012)

This project fully got underway in the spring of 2011. The courtyard at Lake Avenue School was a bit of a mess. Garbage from the rooftop continuously blows into the courtyard so the first job was to pick the garbage. This gave me an opportunity to teach students about taking care of their environment and the importance of having clean, living soil to grow our plants in. Venture Green donated a 4 large containers to Lake Avenue which is where we planted the three sisters (beans, squash, corn). The corn had trouble growing in such a small space but the beans (green & lima) thrived. We were also able to successfully grow one squash and one pumpkin. We are using the seeds from these plants to continue our garden this spring.
Since then the courtyard has had a facelift thanks to Lowes. A team of volunteers came in the fall and dug up weeds, cut back bushes, planted new plants, and spread mulch. The most exciting creation was the small teaching garden. They created a small space for the grade threes to plant and observe changes in plant life. They also added healthy soil, and compost.
The courtyard has been such a great teaching tool and our students have been leaders in promoting environmental stewardship at Lake Avenue.