Bright Futures Academy Charter School
EDU-Garden
Bright Futures Academy Charter School (BFA) is a public school located in Northern Palm Beach County, serving students in grades K-8. Founded in 2001, BFA has grown from 48 students to approximately 650 students who are served on three different campuses located in North Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. The legislative intent of charter schools was to provide students with a quality education using innovative methods and to inform parents of student progress.
New for 2010, BFA is implementing a hands-on program to further engage students in the learning process. On the Palm Beach Gardens Campus, serving 300 students in grades 5-8, the “EDU-Garden” will begin to take shape as part of a campus wide research project. Students will explore an approximately 20,000 sq ft. piece of land beginning with conducting an archeological dig to cultivating a working garden. While working on this project, students will use the scientific method to explore subjects such as botany, biology, chemistry, animal husbandry, entomology, anthropology, archeology, and astronomy, by using math and integrating social studies and language arts.
As students explore and the EDU-Garden begins to take shape, the concept of the organization of human beings and other animals will become a central theme. How do human beings and other animals organize themselves? Who becomes the leaders of a group and why? What happens when resources are depleted? What happens when groups of humans or other animals come in contact? Students will learn about leadership, how to organize the completion of projects, and how to present their ideas to a group through speech and debate.
The learning approach for this project is “student directed, teacher facilitated” and requires each and every student to take ownership of their education. It requires each student to become a researcher, a politician, a writer, and/or a mathematician. Art and music will also be brought into the project through architecture and the experimental use of music and color. Do plants grow better when music is played? Do tomatoes grow better in the presence of the color red? Are people more productive when listening to music while they work? Do colors presented in the garden have a calming effect on humans and/or other animal? Are birds attracted to certain colors? How do you construct a rabbit pen? Our hope is that we will bring excitement back into the classroom for the teachers and the students, and that students will become intrinsically motivated to learn because we have helped make learning fun.
Although the EDU-Garden will be located on the campus which serves grades 5-8, students from the other 2 campuses, in grades K-4, will be invited to take field trips and will be introduced to the garden by older, mentoring students. Additionally, after school activities will be incorporated for those students who have an interest in participating in organizations such as the 4-H club, environmental conservation and/or the educational movement of getting children back to nature.
As we begin this journey, students will be selected to film this process, creating a documentary of the evolution of the EDU-Garden. Not only will the focus of the film be the change in the land over time, but the change in the students and their perception of learning and the change in the teachers and their approach to teaching.
A project as ambitious as this requires an enormous amount of resources. The “Resource Depot” as a part of their program, has historically provided recycled materials to our school and will continue to support the EDU-Garden. In addition, items such as laboratory equipment, telescopes, computer equipment, video cameras, garden tools, dirt, mulch, wood, seeds, wire, hard ware, gloves, wheel barrows, storage sheds and many other items will be needed. Bright Futures Academy is asking for donations of supplies or funding to purchase supplies to provide these necessary items to our students. Bright Futures is a non-profit Florida corporation with a 501(3) (c) which can provide you and/or your company with a tax deduction for your generous gift of these items or funding.
If you are interested in helping make this project a success, please contact Kendall Artusi or Henry DiGiacinto at 561-253-7504.
EDU-GARDEN UPDATES
The Edu-Garden would like to assist you recycle your nursery pots after you have potted your plants. This is a cost free way to help our gardening program.
Click on the slide to view the PDF presentation.
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January-February EDU™Garden Update
Perhaps you have read the article by Dr. Oz in the Jan. 15th , Sunday PBPost, in which he discussed the importance of teaching and encouraging your children to eat vegetables by dipping those bitter broccoli, cauliflower and kale veggies in Ranch dressing. The notion that these things are “good for you” and that eating them now sets the foundation for a healthier lifestyle doesn’t mean much to kids whose taste buds prefer sweet and salty, to the sharp taste of green, leafy vegetables.
Well, our teachers here in the EDU™Garden should be writing newspaper articles because we have a better idea, and further, we have tested our hypothesis. We use broccoli and cauliflower as a discipline measure and have found it to be quite effective!
Here in the garden it goes something like this; “Remember that we picked that broccoli (cauliflower, kale) yesterday? You promised us that we would eat it today, so when can we eat?” I know you are already thinking ‘no way’ and ‘was one of those kids mine?’ Listen in to the classroom banter:
“I am trying to get you to quiet down and stop talking so that I can at least take the role”. Student chatter, papers shuffle and classroom noise persist. “Okay, that’s it! If you all DO NOT stop talking there will be NO BROCCOLI!” Are you noticing that she did not say “someone is going to get a detention?” A student says, “Hey be quiet, nobody talk, please you guys stop talking and sit down in your seats”. “We will not get to eat the broccoli if you do not be quiet!
No need to elaborate further! This milestone, accomplished in only our second year with the EDU™Garden program, is showing that the research behind our hands-on learning environment is RIGHT ON!
Currently in the garden, we are replanting a lot of our crops in the hopes of sneaking in another harvest before our hot weather returns. We suffered minimal damage from the cold weather that we enjoyed over our break and we actually hope for more of the same. Our cold crops (broccoli etc.) love it, and it serves to improve the taste.
A note from the “Chicken Chronicles” as well, to tell you that though our days are shorter, Henney and Penney continue to “lay” but produce less. They are still fun and free entertainment! We hope to add to our flock this week when we visit the fair. Stay tuned!
“Rabbit Ramblings” wants you all to know that we have 7 new kits. We are planning a raffle for the Family Day.
We hope that you will attend our Second Annual EDU™Garden Family Day on January 28, 2012. You will be entertained, educated and thoroughly delighted!
Ms. Pat
