Menlo Park Elementary School Garden

Vital Stats

Brianna M

Tucson, AZ

people helped100
People Doing It 25

The Problem

97% of our students are on the free and reduced lunch program and many of them live in apartments, don't have back yards and their families are on food stamps. Health and nutrition education is something that just doesn't exist in this community. I have kids in my garden class that don't know what squash is, who don't know that carrots grow in the ground! There is a fundamental lack of knowledge about even basic foods. How can we expect our children to lead healthy lives if they don't know where a carrot comes from? If as far as they are concerned, apples come pre-sliced in a plastic bag? These kids grow up thinking that strawberry pop-tarts are a balanced meal because they, and their families, have never known anything else. They will grow up without the tools to make healthy choices unless something changes and they are given the opportunity to learn differently. And thats where we come in! :)

Plan of Action

We are still in the beginning phases of this project. We got some wonderful community donations to start our garden, and I am constantly applying for new grants and other sources of funding to keep it going in the future. I have also been collecting materials (posters, work books, educational handouts, healthy reciples, etc) from many different organizations, as well as working with others at this school to create a new health iniative. In the fall there will, with all luck, be an expanded garden class, new physical activities, and a wide range of health education taking place. Seeing as this project has been in place for only a month, our impact has been moderate. So far, the greatest thing to see is how popular the garden is. It has become a source of discussion among the students and staff - I have kids coming up to me at all hours of the day asking questions about the plants. The kids are really taking off with this and educating each other, showing their friends the garden, telling them all the facts about the compost pile, etc. The next big step for us is to create a rainwater harvesting system. Living in the desert, water is our biggest expense, and I think it would be phenomenal to have a more sustainable garden! Additionally, building a rain jar would serve as a great community project, bringing awareness to we're doing. :)

Environment

Physical and Mental Health

Healthy Living

Sustainability

Water Conservation