Old Man Winter has really been digging his heels in for the past week or so. While we haven’t been pounded with blizzard after blizzard like the beleaguered residents of the Boston area, or slammed with ice storms like the southeast, it has been very cold here in Madison, with temperatures and windchill readings well below zero most mornings. Crestwood students weren’t able to go outside for recess most days last week, and this week the forecast isn’t a whole lot better! Obviously, other outdoor activities like woods walks have been on hiatus as well. While we wait, however impatiently, for the latest arctic blast to pass through, it’s time to pour a cup of hot tea or cocoa and plan for the spring planting season! The garden committee is brainstorming and gathering ideas. Some activities are so popular we repeat them every year, like planting spring ephemerals in the woods and the salad garden with the KG and first graders. Other activities evolve from year to year depending on the needs of the soil and what fits best with the science, math and/or social studies curriculum by grade level. Soil health has been a concern the last few years. Every year 4th graders study soil science with curriculum developed by Peter Plane (retired 4/5 teacher) and Barb Handa (current 4th grade teacher). In October, classes went outside and dug samples from the main front garden, the back K/1 garden and the apple orchard (see pictures below). Over the next few weeks they tested the samples for nutrients and pH level. This year’s test results show that the gardens are once again low on nitrogen, especially the plots out front. We are currently discussing the best course of action - plant another 1200 peas? Buy a lot of compost? Teach a unit on crop rotation? - so be sure to keep checking the blog and the volunteer page!
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AuthorCrestwood's OE committee is dedicated to outdoor learning for all students. Archives
August 2017
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