STUDENT FIELD SCIENCE PROGRAM

Education Program Grow. Give. Teach. THE GENEROUS GARDEN PROJECT

CONTENTS Letter to Instructors…………………………………… General Information…………………………………… Preparing for Your Trip………………………………... Sustainability…………………………………………... Soil & Agriculture……...………………………………. Ecosystems & the Flow of Energy...…………………

DEAR INSTRUCTORS, As part of our mission to Grow, Give, and Teach, the Generous Garden Project offers interactive field trips for grades K-12. Our custom-designed curriculum includes programs developed by a certified environmental science teacher. Our programs are based in the SC Science Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards 2013 Draft. We look forward to welcoming your student group to the garden, where we strive to nourish hungry bodies as well as hungry minds. FROM, BO CABLE Founder and Executive Director

GENERAL INFORMATION Cost: $7 per student FREE for teachers and chaperones *student scholarships available based on need Duration: 3 hours (not including lunch/snack) Group Size: students

PREPARING FOR YOUR TRIP School should provide: First aid kit Chaperone (parent/teacher) for every 8 students Students should bring: Snack/lunch Weather- and garden-appropriate clothing and shoes Generous Garden Project will provide: Instructor Lab materials

MIDDLE GRADE PROGRAMS

SUSTAINABILITY Essential Question: What is Sustainability and how can we integrate it into our everyday lives? Standards: 7-1.2, Students will be able to:  Discuss the need for sustainability due to Earth’s finite resources.  Examine their own lives and the lives of others in order to identify sustainability-focused actions.  Make observations, develop predictions, and generate questions about sustainable practices while exploring the garden.

SUSTAINABILITY (cont.) While in the Generous Garden, students will participate in demonstrations, interactive activities, in-depth discussion, a service learning project, and a time for reflection. Students will engage with the Allegorical Apple demonstration, providing a visual for the reality of how limited Earth’s resources are. After this, students will participate in an interactive game and a scavenger hunt throughout the garden. Students will make predictions and provide supportive evidence. Finally, students will apply what they have learned about sustainability and give back to the community through a service-learning project in our sustainable garden.

Essential Question: In what ways do industrialized farming and Organic Farming differ? Standards: 6-2, 7-4, 8-1 Students will be able to:  Observe the differences of soil types and how their characteristics affect food growth.  Distinguish between chemical farming and organic farming.  Identify organic-farming practices while touring the Generous Garden. SOIL & AGRICULTURE  Conduct a scientific experiment, make observations, record data, and infer results based on these experiences.  Brainstorm design ideas for creating a growing system that would produce more food without the use of chemical fertilizers.

While in the Garden, students will participate in several inquiry-based experiments, in-depth guided discussion, a tour of the garden, a service-learning project, and have a time for reflection. First, students will set up a soil experiment and make prediction about soil particle differences. Next, students will participate in an interactive simulation, demonstrating how using chemicals on a field of crops can impact a nearby water source. After this, students will set up an experiment to determine how using compost affects the growth of plants. Students will take these experiments back to their classroom and be able to continue making observations as the plants grow. With greater prior knowledge, students can now take a tour of the Generous Garden and apply their knowledge through a service-learning project. SOIL & AGRICULTURE (cont.)

ECOSYSTEMS & THE FLOW OF ENERGY Essential Question: How are the components of an ecosystem interconnected with the flow of energy? Standards: 7-4 Students will be able to:  Think critically to develop questions in order to determine the identity of an unknown organism.  Create and analyze their own food chain.  Identify both biotic and abiotic factors and describe their interconnectedness within an ecosystem.  Observe the components of a garden ecosystem and predict their significance to the ecosystem as a whole.

ECOSYSTEMS & THE FLOW OF ENERGY (cont.) While in the Garden, students will participate in interactive games, inquiry-based activities, in- depth discussions, a service-learning project, and have time for reflection. First, students will be engaged with a Mystery Food Chain Game, forcing students to use critical thinking skills in a fun way. Next, students will be challenged with a biotic and abiotic factors timed card-sorting competition. After equipping students with the necessary prior knowledge through the previous activities, students will venture into the garden on a scavenger hunt. During the hunt, they will be encouraged to make observations and infer the connections within the garden ecosystem. Finally, students will have the opportunity to apply what they have learned and give back to the community through a service learning project and time of reflection.

161 Verdin Road Greenville, SC 29607