Arvon Township School - Arvon Township School Sustainment Garden

The first project location was at the school in the garden that was created the 2022-2023 school-year.  This is year two of the garden and the we have incorporated seed saving, red worm composting, recycled paper and lunch waste composting.  The impact this project has on the watershed is that we are reducing waste by composting our lunchroom food and using the soil made for our garden.  Additionally, our garden utilizes a rain barrel.  We are saving ground water by using water from the rain.

The second project locations were beaches in Baraga County.  Students spent a half-day visiting beaches in Baraga County picking up trash and logging it for Alliance for the Great Lakes  Adopt-a-Beach program.  Students upload their trash data to the Alliance for the Great Lakes website and the trash count for the whole Great Lakes is recorded.  Students really get an awareness about how much plastic gets into the lakes.

LSSI leaders came to our school and did a a few lessons with the students to reinforce what the teachers in the classroom were doing.  I was lucky that LSSI staff was working in my location. 

 Dollar Bay Elementary- Pollinators and Native Plants 

We are addressing the community need of how important it is for students and families to plant native plants that benefit our local ecosystem. Another community need we are addressing is the need for native plants to support our local ecosystem. We are adding more native plants to our garden to increase biodiversity. Lastly, we are teaching the students about the importance of pollinators and the dangers of pesticides and herbicides, not only to the pollinators but to the insects, the land and the water. 

Houghton Elementary - Artful Flavors: Connecting Students to their Plate

Farmers came to present to our 4th and 5th graders. Together the students updated the Eat the Rainbow mural in our school cafeteria. Chef Arlene Coco inspired our food stories project with 5th grade with her watercolor food illustrations. Houghton Elementary hosted 12 Farm Club meetings where farmers guided our students through food skills and agricultural insights.

Washington Middle School - Washington's Watershed Caretakers

Our school planned and participated in an adopt a beach cleanup at Calumet Waterworks beach. We also did an invasive species removal (spotted knapweed); throughout the school year we included  overarching lessons on watersheds and invasive species. 

Calumet High School - How to Stewardship

To learn more about stewardship in our community we took a field trip to a local, independent farm called Ghost House Farm. The farmers were generous with their time and talked about what stewardship looks like to them and gave us a tour of all their operations. We next went to our local state park, McLain State Park and talked about this public place that is open to all and maintained by our tax dollars. The philosophy behind these field trips and creating these zines is that the more students know the more they will care about the natural world around them.

Jeffers - Grape Vines and Pollinator Garden 

Students at JHS have planted a vegetable garden and realized it could use more pollinators. Students added to the pollination garden and voted to add in some fruits that would be beneficial to our watershed and be available for fall harvests. Students researched various grapes and their value to the local watershed. Grape plants were put in this spring and students will continue to care and promote their growth.

Lake Linden - Point Mills Stewardship Project

Students learned about the watershed, Lake Superior Mapping, and the importance of caring for our environment. Students focused on both District properties at Point Mills and the School Forest in Bootjack. This year focused on instruction  on the watershed  and understanding how we can care for it.