CHAPTER 1 GARDEN INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1 GARDEN INTRODUCTION

CONTENTS WELCOME GARDENERS! 1-2 LET S TALK DIRT FRIENDS AND FOES CLIMATE AND SEASONS (EDIBLE) PARTS OF A PLANT HARVESTING AND CULMINATING PICNIC RANGER PROGRAM 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10 11-12 13 enrichla.org - Garden Introduction

LESSON 1 CHAPTER 1 GARDEN INTRODUCTION WELCOME GARDENERS! OBJECTIVES INTRODUCTION Students will be introduced to the garden space. Organize a permanent seating chart to promote teamwork, identity, and behavior control. Ask students to participate in the name game to help with introductions. The game will help them learn each other s names and think about the different things they might find in the garden. Instructions for Name Game: Have students say their name and then say something that they might find in the garden that starts with the same letter as their name. Note: You can also use the same sound, if the same letter isn t feasible. Students will know the rules while in the garden. Students will understand the steps involved in transplanting a seedling. To help students feel more comfortable, share with them these examples and then ask someone if they d like to start. Examples: Liz Ladybug, Jose Jalapeno, Melissa Mint, Peter Pill bug, Zach Zucchini, Christina Chrysanthemum, Sara Sink. Once the entire class has said their name take students on a tour of the garden. Identify important items in the garden including, but not limited to: soil, sprinklers, existing plants, trees, outdoor kitchen, picnic tables, compost pile, mulch, etc. enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 1 1

ACTIVITY Talk to the students about the various things they see in the garden. Ask them if they can think of any rules we should follow while in the garden. When they have some ideas, ask them to share with their classmates. Write them down as they go through them. General Rules: Respect all bugs, plants, and things Be kind to your peers Respect pollinators (bees, butterflies, moths, beetles, flies) Eat or harvest only if an adult says okay Always ask questions Planting: Ask students to raise their hand if they have heard of the word seedling or know what the word means. Ask students to raise their hand if they have ever planted a seedling. Explain to students that a seedling is a small plant. It is larger than a seed but smaller than a plant that bears fruit. Review what a plant needs in order to grow: water, sunlight, soil and air. Explain that the plant will get sunlight from living outside. It will get soil from the garden. It will get air by being planted far enough away from its friends. It will get water from the irrigation in the garden. Depending on the garden, it will either get it from the drip system or the sprinklers. Show students where they can plant their seedling in order for the seedling to get the water it needs to grow. Demonstrate to students: how deep to dig the hole, how to handle the seedling, how to loosen the roots and how to bury the roots. Taste: Depending on what is growing in the garden, prepare a taste for students to try. It can be as simple as a freshly picked tomato with a touch of salt and a squeeze of lemon. CONCLUSION Ask students to share some of the things that they learned during the lesson. Review the rules discussed in the garden. Explain that they will visit the garden for the next five weeks, and during each visit they will learn something new about the garden, participate in an activity and taste something that grows in the garden. MATERIALS Rule Poster (10 poster boards) Seedlings, enough seeds/2 students (from EnrichLA) Hand tools, tool/2 students (from EnrichLA) Minimal food supplies to accompany what is growing in the garden CALIFORNIA STATE STANDARDS Next Generation Science: K-LS1-1. Use observations to describe patterns of what plants and animals (including humans) need to survive. Common Core ELA: W.K.7 Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of books by a favorite author and express opinions about them). 2 enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 1

LESSON 2 CHAPTER 1 GARDEN INTRODUCTION LET S TALK DIRT OBJECTIVES Students will know that soil is important for life. Students will be able to describe the difference between sand, silt and clay. INTRODUCTION Ask students to raise their hand if they know why soil is important. What grows in soil? Who needs it in order to live? Soil is important because: (1) plants need it to grow, (2) insects live in or on it, (3) it helps filter our water and, (4) plants that grow in soil give us oxygen to breathe. All soil is made from a mixture of sand, silt, clay and organic matter. Sand is the largest particle. When soil has too much sand, there s lots of space between each grain of sand. Sandy soil doesn t hold water well and doesn t stick together. Since the grains of sand are large, more air is in sandy soil than other types. Silt is finer than sand but still feels gritty. Silt is the particle that makes mud. Plants like silt but silt often blows away by wind or water. Clay is very fine but makes soil heavy and dense. Since it is the smallest particle there s little room between each particle of clay. When it is dry it is very hard for plants roots to grow. Since there s little room between each particle, there s very little oxygen in clay soil. This makes it hard for bacteria and other organisms to live. Loam is the best combination. Loam is a combination of sand, silt and clay. It has equal parts sand and silt with a little less clay. It allows water and air to move through it but can also retain, or hold on to water, air and humus. ACTIVITY Students will work in groups of five to determine the soil type in their garden. In groups of five students will find a handful of soil somewhere in the garden. Encourage them to explore different parts of the garden. It will be more interesting if students have different soil types. Once they have a handful of soil, be sure that each sample is moist but not wet. On the count of three have students gently squeeze their sample. Ask them to open their hand and share what happened. Talk about what that felt like as a group. Have them choose from the following: (1) It held its shape, and when they poke it, it crumbles. This means they have loam! (cont) enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 2 3

(2) It held its shape, and, when they poke it, it doesn t crumble. This means they have clay soil. (3) It held its shape, and, when they poke it, it doesn t crumble BUT it is a little rough to the touch. This means they have silty soil. (4) It crumbles when they open their hand. This means they have sandy soil. If time permits: Using water, soda bottles, and soil, students can use the bigger they are, the faster they fall principle to find out whether sand, silt, or clay is made of larger particles. Taste: Depending on what is growing in the garden, prepare a taste for students to try. Do your best to have students try something different from what they tried the week prior. If possible, give them a taste of beans (which give the soil nitrogen) or something else that has an interesting relationship with soil. CONCLUSION Ask students to share the three types of soil, ranging from smallest to largest particle size. (Answer, Clay, Silt, Sand) Ask a few students to share something that they learned today, and to point out something that interested them. MATERIALS Paper and markers to make ($10.59/500 sheets): Cards with words and definitions (Sand, silt, clay) Also include cards that explain the importance of soil. Supplies needed for tasting (napkins--$1.95) CALIFORNIA STATE STANDARDS Earth Sciences: 3c. Students know that soil is made partly from weathered rock and partly from organic materials and that soils differ in their color, texture, capacity to retain water, and ability to support the growth of many kinds of plants. 3e. Students know rock, water, plants, and soil provide many resources, including food, fuel, and building materials, that humans use. 4 Earth Sciences: Investigation and Experimentation in Science: 4 a. Make predictions based on observed patterns and not random guessing. c. Compare and sort common objects according to two or more physical attributes (e.g., color, shape, texture, size, weight). Common Core ELA: Literacy.RI.2.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 to pic or subject area. Literacy.W.2.8 Re call information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question. enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 2

LESSON 3 CHAPTER 1 WELCOME GARDENERS FRIENDS AND FOES OBJECTIVES Students will understand the interconnectedness of species in the garden. Students will know new species of plants and insects in the garden. Students will understand new vocabulary words in the context of the garden. INTRODUCTION Explain to students that the garden is home to many species. There are many bugs, insects and critters, as well as plants in the garden. Some of these creepy crawling creatures are friends and some are foes of the plants in the garden. Friends, or our helpers in the garden are species that make the garden flourish. They can be pollinators and predators of the foes in the garden. Foes, or enemies, in the garden are species that make it difficult for the garden to flourish. They eat plants or harm the pollinators. ACTIVITY Find a space in or near the garden that is large enough for a game of tag. Print the images provided. Give each student a card with a picture on it. On the back of each card you will need to write the name of the species and either: friend, foe, or plant. Share with students that they will be learning more about the garden friends and foes through a game of freeze tag. Warn students that it is better to keep their identity secret so that their classmates don t find out who they are. In the game, no one person is it and no one is eliminated from the game. In short, everyone can tag everyone else. When one student tags another, they both share their identity, which is either: friend, foe or plant. When a plant is tagged by a foe they must freeze and sit down. When a friend sees a plant frozen on the ground, they can tag them and bring them back to life. When friends and foes tag each other they resolve the tie with a game of rock, paper, scissors. If a friend is frozen, another friend can unfreeze them and when a foe is frozen, another foe can unfreeze them. When two students from the same group tag each other they give each other high-5s and continue. If time permits, play the game a few times so students have the chance to be in a different role. Taste: Depending on what is growing in the garden, prepare a taste for students to try. Do your best to have students try something different from what they tried the week prior. It can be a variation but tastes are intended to expose students to a different healthy food. It could even be one parsley leaf each. enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 3 5

CONCLUSION Ask students what they observed in the game. What are some of our garden friends? What are some foes? Ask students to share what they think we should do when we come across a friend or a foe. If time permits, allow students to explore the garden to see if they can spot a friend or foe. MATERIALS One card per student (approximately 30) Marker to write Species and Friend, Foe or Plant Supplies needed for tasting (napkins--$1.95) CALIFORNIA STATE STANDARDS Common Core ELA: RI.5.7 Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently. (5-LS2-1) SL.5.5 Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes. (5- LS2-1) Next Generation Science: 5-LS2-1. Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposer, and the environment. A system can be described in terms of its components and interactions. Common Core Mathematics: MP.2 Reason abstractly and quantitatively. (5-LS2-1) 6 enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 3

LESSON 4 CHAPTER 1 WELCOME GARDENERS CLIMATE AND SEASONS OBJECTIVES Students will be able to identify the Los Angeles ecosystem. Students will be able to identify the two planting seasons. Students will be able to identify which plants are cold-weather and which are warm-weather crops. INTRODUCTION Ask students two introductory questions: What season are we in now? Did you know that we only experience two planting seasons? We are lucky because our seasons last a little longer than most. We have two seasons: a cool season and warm season. Our planting seasons last several months because of our unique weather. We live in a Mediterranean climate/ecosystem - we have warm summers and mild-cool, wet winters - easy to grow food all year long. ACTIVITY Explain to students some crops go dormant, or does minimal activity during some seasons. Some crops love certain weather and only grow in those months. You can also use the animal hibernation analogy. Review cold weather in Los Angeles and warm weather in Los Angeles. Cold tends to be: cloudy, cool, windy, rainy, under 80 degrees, frosty, shady, wet, less than 6 hours of direct sunlight. Warm tends to be: hot, warm, no clouds, above 80 degrees, clear skies, dry, sunny, bright, more than hours of direct sunlight. Tell students that they are going to get play a game. Every student will receive a card with a picture of a cool or warm season plant on it. Half of the class should get a cool season plant and the other half should get a warm season plant. Behind each card should be marked W for Warm, C for Cold. For this game, use plants that students are familiar with. Explain to students that you ll read aloud weather conditions. When a weather condition is read, they have to squat or put their head down if they think it is their turn to be dormant. Dormant plants go down, non-dormant (or thriving) plants put their arms up and cheer. When students are ready, play the game. Here are some examples: frosty sunny day above 85 degrees - heavy rain less than 6 hours of sunlight #2 more than 8 hours on direct sunlight #1 Ask students to switch their card with a classmate who has a card with a plant that thrives in the opposite season. Taste: Have students IDENTIFY something in the garden that is in season, or seems to be doing well based on the current weather. For example, in the late-summer or fall students might notice juicy tomatoes. In the winter, they might notice that the chard is big and green. Once they ve identified a plant, harvest the plant for students to taste. enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 4 7

Accompanying Material CONCLUSION Ask students to name the weather conditions and when we normally experience them. Do we experience frost in the summer? What plants liked the frost? Should we plant them in the summer? Plants need certain weather conditions to grow (and to taste good)! For example, if lettuce is planted in warm weather it will bolt, or go to seed and its leaves will turn bitter before we can enjoy its refreshing taste. It has to be planted in the cool season. MATERIALS One card per student (approximately 30) Marker to write information on the back of the card CALIFORNIA STATE STANDARDS Next Generation Science: Next Generation Science California State Standards: K-ESS2-1. Use and share observations of local weather conditions to describe patterns over time. 3-ESS2-1. Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season 3-ESS2-2. Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world. Common Core ELA: RI.3.9 Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic. Common Core Mathematics: MP.2 Reason abstractly and quantitatively. 8 enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 4

LESSON 5 CHAPTER 1 WELCOME GARDENERS (EDIBLE) PARTS OF A PLANT OBJECTIVES Students will be able to identify the six basic parts of a plant. Students will be able to describe the importance of each part of a plant. Students will be able to articulate which part of the plant people consume. INTRODUCTION We eat fruits and vegetables that are roots, leaves, stems, seeds and flowers. Some parts of the plants are good for us but some parts poisonous. It is important to learn which part of the plant we do eat. For example, tomatoes are the tasty fruit of the plant but their leaves will make us sick. ACTIVITY Bring a vegetable into class, or harvest one from the garden so students can see some of the parts described. It is hard to find a fruit or vegetable (at the market) that has all parts still on it. Explain to the students that the plants that we eat are similar to other living things. Each part is important for its survival. Flower - a shoot of a plant that is specialized for reproduction and bears modified leaves as petals Fruit - the ripened ovary of a seed plant when sweet and pulpy Leaf - one of the green, usually flat parts that grow from a stem or twig of a plant and that function mainly in making food by photosynthesis Root - the organ of the plant that lies below the soil Seed - a fertilized ripened ovule of a flowering plant that contains an embryo and is capable of producing a new plant; also, a plant structure as a spore or small dry fruit capable of producing a new plant Stem - the main stalk of a plant that develops buds and shoots and usually grows above the ground Pictionary: Have class count off into two teams. Give each student a picture of one of the fruits or vegetables listed below. Don t show the card to anyone else. Have them each come to the whiteboard to draw their plant while the other students try to name the fruit or vegetable. Then have them decide which part of the plant we normally eat: the flower, fruit, leaf, root, seed or stem. Some fruits and vegetables have multiple edible parts. For example, if you give them a picture of a pumpkin it will be a fruit but if you give them the seeds, it will be a seed. Once they ve placed their card in the category, go over each one with the group. Sometimes it is fun to ask the students what the vegetable is called in Spanish, Korean or their native language. enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 5 9

Fruits and Vegetables Classification: Stems: asparagus, celery, kohlrabi, leeks Flowers: cauliflower, broccoli, artichoke Roots: radish, beet, carrot, parsnip, onion, garlic, turnip, sweet potatoes Seeds: peas or beans in pod, corn on the cob Fruit: eggplant, squash, tomatoes, cucumber, strawberry, pepper Leaves: lettuce, cabbage, spinach, mustard greens, beet green, kale, chard, mint, Brussels sprouts (they are a very tight bud of leaves) Taste: Have students explore the garden and identify which part of the plant they eat based on what is growing. Harvest and have students identify which part of the plant they are going to eat. CONCLUSION Ask the class if they can name all of the parts of the plant, then call on one student. Ask students to name one interesting thing they learned in the lesson. Then ask them who they can share this new knowledge with when they get home. MATERIALS White board for signs for the different parts of the plants (from EnrichLA) White board markers of different colors Cards with pictures of fruits and vegetables Markers for writing (ask students to bring their own writing utensils) Supplies for tasting (napkins--$1.95) 10 CALIFORNIA STATE STANDARDS Next Generation Science: 1.LS2.e Students know roots are associated with the intake of water and soil nutrients and green leaves are associated with making food from sunlight. 3-LS1-1. Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death. Common Core ELA: RI.3.7 Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur). enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 5

LESSON 6 CHAPTER 1 WELCOME GARDENERS HARVESTING AND CULMINATING PICNIC OBJECTIVES Students will be able to identify the term harvest. Students will be able to understand how to harvest foods and how seasons come into play when harvesting. Students will be able to recognize when edible plants are ready to be harvested. Students will learn that unripe foods can be harmful to people. INTRODUCTION Ask students if they have ever tasted a fruit or vegetable that isn t ripe. Ask them to use adjectives to describe what their senses experienced. When eating it, what did it smell, taste, look, sound and feel like? Explain to the class that when plants are unripe, they can be harmful. The reason why they taste bad is because the plant is telling us it shouldn t be eaten. When the plant is too bitter, unusually green or displaying something unattractive to our senses, it can be harmful to people. For example, when potatoes are harvested too soon, and they have a green spot it means that the alkaloids haven t dissolved. Explain that today they are going to harvest, or pick a crop in the garden. After we harvest, we will use the ingredients to make a snack. ACTIVITY Demonstrate to students how to properly harvest fruits and vegetables in the garden. Depending on what you will make with them, make sure students understand how much each person should harvest. (i.e. one leaf, two strawberries) Example Recipe to Follow: Chard Tacos 10 leaves of chard 3 carrots 2 avocados 2 apples 2 beets or radishes 8 string/bush beans For dressing: 2 lemons 1 ½ Tablespoon Olive Oil Rice vinegar Salt and pepper to taste *serves one class of about 30 students Divide students into small groups of 5-6. Prepare the avocados prior to class by slicing them into thin, long pieces. Also, slice lemons in half. Group 1: Collect chard, rinse and tear each leaf into three pieces (and set aside). Group 2: Collect, rinse and peel carrots. Group 3: Rinse, core and slice apples into straws. Group 4: Collect, rinse and slice beets/radishes into straws. Group 5: Collect, rinse and (use scissors to) cut beans into ¼ pieces. Group 6: Combine and whisk each ingredient to make dressing. Have students in Groups 2-5 put ingredients in large bowl and have Group 6 pour dressing over ingredients. Mix well. Have each student take one piece of chard, let students use tongs to fill theirs with the ingredients from the bowl and take a slice of avocado to place on top. Ask students to wait until every student is served before they eat. If possible, sit at picnic tables too. Optional: Ask one group to put the tablecloth on the table and to find flowers from the garden to decorate the table. You can use a recycled can as a vase. Ask students to describe what they taste. Which flavors are stronger? enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 6 11

MATERIALS 3 Scissors 1 Whisk 3 Knives 2-3 Crinkle cutters 6 Cutting boards Paper towels (from classroom) Large mixing bowl Small mixing bowl Ingredients for Chard Tacos 30 leaves of chard ($2.79) 9 carrots ($0.21/carrot) 6 avocados ($1.70/avocado) 6 apples ($4.39/3 lbs) 6 beets or radishes ($1.09/radish) 24 string/bush beans ($2.19/lb) Ingredients for dressing on Chard Tacos: 2 lemons ($1.49/lemon) 4 ½ Tablespoon Olive Oil ($5.99 for 17 oz.) Rice vinegar ($2.79/10 oz.) Salt and pepper to taste CONCLUSION Explain that this is the last class of their garden unit but they are always welcome to visit the garden. Before they go, have each class complete the quick evaluation based on their grade level. CALIFORNIA STATE STANDARDS Common Core ELA: RST.6-8.3 Follow precisely a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks. For example, following recipes to create a dish. 12 Next Generation Science: MS-LS1-8. Gather and synthesize information that sensory receptors respond to stimuli by sending messages to the brain for immediate behavior or storage as memories. enrichla.org - Garden Introduction - Lesson 6

GARDEN RANGER PROGRAM Currently in 61 schools and counting, this innovative program ensures that students benefit from the presence of edible school gardens and that the garden is taken care of throughout the year. A trained garden ranger is consistently on site for a half a day every week to care for the garden and to deliver our straightforward and cheerful curriculum. We supply all of the materials, seedlings, amendments, teaching supplies and take care of repairs. ENJOY The ranger program allows students to spend valuable time outdoors, enjoying and learning from the garden. EDUCATE Our ever-expanding K-12 interdisciplinary curriculum engages and challenges students to learn in a unique outdoor classroom- the garden! Our Garden Rangers show the students how they can control the success of the space through their own efforts. CARE The Garden Ranger, with the help of the school community, is responsible for the success and growth of the garden throughout the school year and during breaks. ENGAGE The Garden Ranger program encourages parent, teacher, student and community involvement. Our Garden Ranger blog about their work every week. enrichla.org - Garden Ranger Program 13

a Tomas O Grady non-profit A garden in every Los Angeles School. Every child in every school in this city ought to experience the joy of growing, harvesting, preparing and eating simple whole foods. We are making that happen. Our customer is the student. Our goal is to raise a generation of food snobs and caring planet dwellers. Folks who think twice about eating junk. Contact us at: tomasogrady@enrichla.org 323-377-3260