Do you know a Dominque from a Rhode Island Red? A kale seedling from a snap pea? PCS 2nd graders do. Their spring science unit “Living Things” celebrates rebirth and sustainability in all its forms.
A newly-hatched quail thrives in the warmth of a lamp-heated enclosure while a dozen chicks still in their shells in incubators await their time to hatch, using their “egg tooth” while pipping their way through the egg’s wall.
Out in the playground, three raised beds (materials funded by a grant from Lowe’s) yield early spring vegetables and flowers, which will be harvested next month and used in soup and salads at the 2nd grade feast to celebrate the end of the school year.
Chief Cuffee Agriculturalist, Mr. Pike remarked, “The main idea of the garden was to make them more invested in healthy food so they would be more likely to eat it given the chance. So we grow it, cook it, and eat it.”
The science unit is designed to promote active hands-on learning and inquiry-based experimentation through planting, watering, and nurturing the gardens, watching brood behavior, and the hatching process and answering the essential question, “where does our food come from?”
Besides all that, it’s fun.