Have you ever really looked into what your community is made of? Take a walk or bike ride around where you live (the more the merrier- ask others in your community to join you if you like). What makes you proud? Is somebody doing something you think is cool like picking up trash in the park or playing music? Maybe it's a building, park, or garden you love. As you explore, pay attention to anything you want to be different. Are they mostly physical things or maybe an attitude?

Look at this description of Holden Heights. It’s pretty boring! This is probably not what you notice as you explore. How would you describe your community?

There's always room for improvement. Do you believe there's anything you can do to make a change? These sites may give you some ideas: Do Something, Hands on Orlando, 11 Service Projects. Explore one or all of them

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR:

Ask students to think of one thing they'd like to try in their community. They can tell about it in writing, video, or drawing.

He made his way over to the shack and found a water pump with a small jug of water and a note. The note read: “Pour all the water into the top of the pump to prime it, if you do this you will get all the water you need.”

Now the man had a choice to make, if he trusted the note and poured the water in and it worked he would have all the water he needed. If it didn't work he would still be thirsty and he might die. Or he could choose to drink the water in the jug and get immediate satisfaction, but it might not be enough and he still might die. After thinking about it the man decided to risk it. He poured the entire jug into the pump and began to work the handle, at first nothing happened and he got a little scared but he kept going and water started coming out. So much water came out he drank all he wanted, took a shower, and filled all the containers he could find.

Have you ever heard the saying "Rome wasn't built in a day?" This saying is used to remind us that great accomplishments take time, consistent effort and deliberate action.

How might this apply to gardening?

Two tricks that may help you to resist instant rewards are to:

• Celebrate small wins along the way
• Create an encouraging saying that inspires you

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR:

Ask students to create an encouraging personal mantra that celebrates the small wins.

Then ask students to name a goal that is worth preparing for and list three milestones that they can celebrate along the way.

Where's Health Tho is "Where's Waldo" meets community health! Do you know where health is happening in your community? The truth is if we take a closer look, we can find health all around us... at local community centers, parks, and maybe even on your street.

Being healthy is more than just exercise and eating right. It's important to consider your mental and emotional health, too! Even just spending time outside with friends, going for a bike ride by yourself, or attending a community event can all improve your overall wellness.

In this XP, you'll explore the health-profile of your neighborhood, participate in a new health-related event or activity, and create your own activity to contribute to building a culture of health in your community. Here's what to do:

1. Talk to your friends and peers to find out what they do to stay healthy.
2. Use Google, Facebook, or Eventbrite to search upcoming events related to health and wellness (you can try starting with some of the community centers in the resource list).
3. Make a list of at least 5 healthy activities or events that you could do this month. Include a few that are held somewhere you've never been to or where you can meet new people in your community.
4. Didn't find what you were hoping for? Think about the kinds of activities you would want to see happening in your community. Maybe it's a group bike ride, yoga in the park... if you can dream it, you can do it!

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR:

Take students to participate in an event, activity, or volunteer experience that is health related!

Growing food is a lot easier than you might think... ready to give it a try?

The best way to learn is by doing. In this XP, you'll learn the basics of how to grow food by researching where gardening/farming is happening in your neighborhood and attending a gardening event or volunteer experience.

The organizations in and around Holden Heights offer a lot of opportunities to get your hands in the dirt and plant some food. Maybe you even know someone personally who can show you the ropes!

Step 1: Find food related events near you. Use Google and talk to your friends. (Check the resources section-- we gave you a head start on your research!)

Step 2: Once you have a list of events, pick the one that interests you most.

Step 3: Attend the class, event, workshop or volunteer experience and document what you learned back here on LRNG!

The end of the world may not be happening anytime soon, but would you know how to survive if all the food stores in your city disappeared? What does it take to grow your own groceries?

In this XP, you'll test your survival chops by learning about the nutritional profile of vegetables and which are the best to grow in your area.

Check out the resources below to get a hint of what to consider when choosing your survival vegetable. Then, look up the vegetables that grow best in your area (you can find your plant hardiness zone here) and find one you think you could grow in the event of an apocalypse. Bonus points if you find a native plant!

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR:

Make this a game! Go outside and playfully ask the following questions & let the students know who is surviving the longest:

• Which plant would be best (especially nutrition-wise) to grow in the event of an apocalypse?
• Why did you chose this vegetable? Give 2-3 reasons.
• What are some things to consider when growing this vegetable? Give 2-3 growing specifications.

Different plants have different requirements to grow big and strong, but the basics are the same. Just like people, plants need food (nutrients), water and a place to live (a medium). Growing media are the materials that plants grow in and are used to support plant growth, allow for root growth, and provide the roots with nutrients and water.

Peat Moss:. It retains a lot of moisture while allowing for plenty of oxygen to be present in the root zone. Peat moss is mainly used in passive hydroponic systems and has no nutritional value

CoCo Coir: It's close to pH neutral and retains water while allowing for a good amount of oxygen for the roots. It is mainly used in container gardening and in passive hydroponic systems.

Perlite: It provides good drainage and is lightweight. It should also be mixed with other mediums since it doesn't retain water.

Compost: It is made up of decomposing plant matter and has a deep earthy smell. It's packed with nutrients to help plants grow.

For this XP, you're going to learn about different growing media, and the plants that can grow in them. Visit a community garden near you and take note of the different media being used to grow there.

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR:

Take students outside to identify a growing medium other than traditional potting soil.

In this XP, you'll learn how to research recipes based on what you're growing and choose the tastiest and the most healthy based on some basic principles of nutrition. Even if you aren't growing your own food yet, you can find out what is in season near you to chose a recipe based on what are the freshest available fruits and vegetables.

Are you hungry yet?! Here's what to do:

• Attend a local cooking demonstration or workshop (see the resources for a good place to start)
• Talk to the best chef you know. How do they decide what to cook? Where did they learn?
• Do your own research. You can find nutrition food bloggers on Instagram, YouTube, and even Snapchat!

Once you're armed with nutritional knowledge and inspired by the chefs around you, it's your turn to get in the kitchen! Focusing on in-season fruits and vegetables, find and make a home-cooked meal and share it here.

FOR THE INSTRUCTOR:

Together, cook up a meal using the fresh, local veggies the students have grown.