2.7: Healthy Home/School Environment

Return to Objective 2: Student-driven Sustainability Practices

In December of 2021, 30 2nd grade students worked with a school partner, B. Willow, to build succulent gardens. Students learned parts of the plant, what makes succulents specially adapted and how to care for their succulent. Each students took their self-created terrarium home to improve the health of their home environments. House pants help improve air quality and lower stress. Additionally students tasted aloe juice as they planted aloe in their terrariums.

This club of 6th, 7th and 8th grade students meets twice a month. Around 15 students attend on a regular basis to explore different countries, cultures and cuisines. During their time, the students research different aspects of the country including its geography, environment, and those factors impact the food eaten there. The slide shown below is a slide created by a student participant in December 2021 while the club was focusing on Thailand.

A 6th grade boys advisory of 15 students is coordinating and initiative to get a plant in every classroom. In January of 2021, they created a poster to advertise the benefits of plants in the classrooms to teachers. They are currently (March 2022) in the process of signing teachers up to receive their plants. They have gathered plant cuttings from teachers and volunteers who have larger plants, are reusing plastic containers around the school for planting, and putting to use soil that is left over from old science kits in order to plant their cuttings.