CommunityGrows » Schools

After School at Cobb Elementary Garden

Barbara Wenger — Fri, 31 May 2013 01:53:39 +0000

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These last few days of the school year are so sunny, warm and joyful. Yesterday, May 29, 2013 for instance, brought everyone out after-school to the schoolyard for playing games, running, and working in the garden! William L. Cobb Elementary School, a K-5 San Francisco public school, has a great little garden just off the schoolyard, in a long rectangled space with many levels and tiers. About ten youth joined Garden Educator Adrian Almquist going through the space to pull up weeds, water trees, and bushes, and plant vegetables like sugar snap peas and carrots. Here is a video of their seed planting.

Mrs. Jefferson’s Kindergarden at Rosa Parks

Barbara Wenger — Tue, 21 May 2013 02:40:50 +0000

Who could ask for a better day? Today, May 20, 2013 the Kinder-gardener’s in Ms. Jefferson’s class got a treat! Out to the garden in the morning to start the week at Rosa Parks! After a lesson in harvesting and identifying plants, everyone got to pick vegetables to take home to their families. Snap peas, fava beans, dinosaur kale, lettuce, Calendula flowers and strawberries. The youth were joined by Mr. Hector Melendez, Senior Program Officer of the Kimball Foundation who came along to see us in action. Even in Kindergarden these students knew the difference between snap peas and fava beans, and why the kale was named “dinosaur”. [It resembles the skin of a dinosaur, so they say!].

Rosa Parks Workday and Caterpillar

Barbara Wenger — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 17:21:43 +0000

A great turnout for our Rosa Parks Workday on Saturday, April 27, 2013. Over forty volunteers from Starbucks joined many parents and friends of the garden to do spring gardening and cleaning. Another highlight of the day was placing tiles on the growing caterpillar that graces the wall around the Lower Garden. These tiles were created by parents and friends as a fundraising venture.

Rosa Parks has two basketball court-sized gardens, the Upper Garden and the Lower Garden.
The Lower Garden is divided into large plots for each classroom to grow fruits, vegetables and flowers. Ezekiel McCarter, our CommunityGrows Rosa Parks garden assistant, works with the teachers and their students in this garden, facilitating break time and doing whatever the teachers need. He also created a Garden Dragon club for youth to gain points for helping weed, and care for the garden. Students collect points which they can use to buy fun items and school supplies.

The Upper Garden is used primarily as a teaching garden with Nora Brereton, Director of Programs, in charge of classes. This garden has chickens, which are a few of the most exciting inhabitants of the school!

During the workday volunteers were busy weeding paths, mulching strawberries, planting seeds, turning compost, cleaning/organizing the shed, and watering in the Lower Garden. In the Upper Garden these tasks continued, as well as tending the chicken coop, and hog wiring the chicken run.

A delicious lunch was laid out with amazing foods and ethnic dishes brought by the parents of Rosa Parks. Umm, umm good! Such a treat after a great day with families and friends! For more photos, check out our CommunityGrows Flickr Photostream.

John Muir Teachers on Microscopes

Barbara Wenger — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 02:53:57 +0000

On Tuesday, March 19th, 2013, CommunityGrows staff Nora Brereton and Adrian Almquist lead a professional development workshop on microscopes for John Muir Elementary School teachers. These microscopes were purchased for the garden/science program of CommunityGrows at John Muir School. Teachers received instruction on how to work with the microscopes for their students in K-5th grade. They had an opportunity to look through slides of pollen and spores, tiny creatures and animals, plants, insects and textile fibers. The teachers each received curriculum sheets to use with their students, and went through the best practices on care and maintenance of the microscopes. It is a great learning opportunity to share with the John Muir Elementary School students.

Measuring with John Muir’s 2nd Grade

Barbara Wenger — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 00:29:32 +0000

On Tuesday, February 26th Ms. Page’s second grade came to the Koshland Garden to learn about measurements. With the help of garden educator Adrian Almquist, and BEET intern, Julien Lundh, each student took their rulers and began measuring everything. The length of logs, the width of flower beds, the height of bean sprouts, more objects in the garden, they even measured their feet and fingers too. Learning about inches and feet, was a great start for introducing math to these second graders. Sitting in the herb garden at the end of the lesson, they all spotted a hawk flying nearby. It sure was a great day to have some outdoor education!

Rosa Parks Tiles for Garden Program

Barbara Wenger — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 23:58:44 +0000

On Saturday, February 23, 2013 Rosa Parks Elementary School’s Green Team had another Tile Making Day to raise money for the garden project. Many families came out to paint a tile which will be added to our long caterpiller that graces the lower garden. Some of our BEETS joined the garden crew weeding and composting for the spring. Principal Paul Jacobsen also joined us, which was a great treat! Here he is with parent Karen Kai and some of our BEETS. Our chickens are doing well too!

Thanksgiving at John Muir School

Barbara Wenger — Sat, 24 Nov 2012 21:22:38 +0000

CommunityGrows joined Community Partners United, the Western Addition Beacon Center, the Buchanan YMCA, and Mo’Magic to celebrate the 9th Annual Giving Voice to the Season Thanksgiving Dinner at John Muir Elementary School on Saturday, November 17th, 2012 from 12:00 noon to 3:00 PM. Many families and residents of the community participated. There were great musical activities, fantastic food, an a raffle for turkeys. This Fostering Season event was a means to connect residents with service providers. Youth and adults performed songs and dances, Handful Players also put on a student medley, and our very own Nora Brereton played her harp—accompanying her friend Patrice who sang. Our BEETS helped sign families in and work the food line. A great dinner was had by all!

John Muir Schoolyard gets a Makeover!

Barbara Wenger — Sat, 24 Nov 2012 06:02:23 +0000

Friday, October 19th, 2012 was a great milestone for John Muir Elementary School and CommunityGrows. John Muir School was CommunityGrows’ (formerly Hayes Valley Neighborhood Parks Group) first partner back in 1994 when we started teaching the students science in Koshland Park and Garden a half block away. We have maintained a presence in the school all these years, and have advocated for the greening of the school in many ways. Aside from taking the pre-K to 5th graders to the garden most school days, we’ve offered training for the teachers, double-dug a garden in the front of the school—with sidewalk trees and planter boxes, supported the development of its PTA, and advocated for a green schoolyard. This advocacy became a reality in October when students, parents, teachers, neighbors, Starbucks employees, students from Drew High School, and CommunityGrows BEETS (Band of Environmentally Educated and Employable Teens) and staff planted trees and flowers in the newly renovated and transformed schoolyard. Principal Chris Rosenberg was on hand to roll up his sleeves and spread good cheer. It was great to see the spirit and enthusiasm of parents and teachers. The YMCA Western Addition Beacon after-school program was out in force as well. We are so proud of this beautiful new space and happy to be involved in this wonderful school. Thank you John Muir! To see more photos, check out our CommunityGrows Flickr photostream.

Rosa Parks BBQ Fun!

Barbara Wenger — Sat, 24 Nov 2012 00:15:24 +0000

Saturday, September 22, 2012 was a fun back-to-school BBQ for families and friends of Rosa Parks Elementary School. Our BEETS (Band of Environmentally Educated and Employable Teens) helped out by leading the games: hula hoops, clothespin drops, bean-bag tosses, and jump rope. There was great food and lots of community to help start the new year. The grand finale was decorating bikes and having a parade in the huge play yard. A great success and wonderful fun day! Thank you Rosa Parks for having CommunityGrows tend and teach garden education. For more photos of this event, check out our Flickr photostream. Thank you Rosa Parks Elementary School!

Starbucks and Washington HS joins Rosa Parks Workday!

Barbara Wenger — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 18:37:02 +0000

On Saturday, September 8th, 2012, Starbucks employees, and teens from Washington High School came out to help CommunityGrows get Rosa Parks Elementary School gardens ready for the fall semester. Lead by crew leader and Starbucks ambassador, Jeremy Siemens, the employees helped prune and glean the garden and get beds ready for planting. Washington High School teens worked primarily in the lower teaching garden weeding, turning the soil and composting. The Rosa Parks parents team of carpenters came out to shore up the chicken coop and put on a new roof. Also joining us that day was our new garden assistant, Ezekiel McCarter, who will be working at Rosa Parks, helping maintain and assist the teachers using the lower garden. Ezekiel is a graduate of our BEETS (Band of Environmentally Educated and Employable Teens) Program and we are thrilled to have him as an employee.