It has been exciting to think about the products of our gardening project. Groups of students will be responsible for 16 square feet of garden space. Students chose their own groups based on class periods. I have 3 classes of students developing this project, a total of 72 students.
The first task for students was a garden design competition. Students measured out an area between our library and J-Wing, the first middle school wing. Each group layed out the perimeter on graph paper and began developing the designs. The designs needed to address three areas: functionality, aesthetics, and education.
For functionality, students needed to keep in mind some of the givens for the garden. These givens included accomodating twelve 4' X 4' garden boxes and six 4' X 8' garden boxes. In addition, they needed to layout the boxes with three feet of mulch separating the boxes. Finally, any grassy area needed to accomodate a 72-inch mower deck utilized by our Physical Plant employees who maintain campus lawns.
For aesthetics, students needed to consider what design elements would be eye-pleasing to campus visitors. What design layout would be inviting to passerbys? Where should sitting/grassy areas be located?
For education, students needed to consider how the space could be utilized to accomodate a K-12 campus community. How would the design accomodate collaboration with elementary students? Does it make sense to have a sitting area in the center or on the edges? How easy would it be to expand the garden to allow for other grade level participation if additional funding is secured?
The top six designs were chosen among the 30+ designs submitted. Each class voted on their top 2 designs. Above is a picture of each design.
