DARIEN, Conn. Students at Darien's elementary schools will find out first-hand where food comes from as they learn to grow plants and everything that goes with that work. Darien plans to install gardens at the elementary schools to be maintained by students and tie the work in with the curriculums.
"We envision these gardens as an on-site field trip designed to teach them real hands-on experience about some of the things they are learning," said John Rechi, principal of Ox Ridge Elementary School. When kindergartners are learning about the effects of seasons on living things or when fourth-graders are learning about water and soil, they would be able to go into the garden and see the subjects' connections to the real world.
The gardens will be established first at Ox Ridge and Tokeneke, which would then serve as a template for the rest of Darien's elementary schools. So far, all PTO presidents have committed to providing support and work on the gardens through "green teams" that have been established at all the schools.
The schools estimate that a garden would cost about $4,500 to build, but many local businesses have pledged donations to help get the projects started. As of now, each school would need to raise about $550. "It's entirely possible that by the time anybody is ready to break ground, that number could be down to zero," said Assistant Superintendent Matt Byrnes.
The gardens will primarily be vegetable gardens, and Byrnes said the schools will probably let the kids eat what they grow. Some of the vegetables may be donated to local charities and shelters. During the summer, it is likely that schools will have families sign up to take care of the gardens in exchange for keeping some food for free.
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