The Edible Schoolyard

Somewhere in the email and blogposting universe, I tripped over a link to an Edutopia story about the Edible Schoolyard.

Martin Luther King Middle School, in Berkley, CA, has a one-acre garden where students grow food, raise chickens, learn about soil, pollination, water cycle, and all the other good stuff that is part of life. They also learn the value of physical labor and work ethic. I imagine they experience and learn about true team work, collaboration, planning, disappointments, successes, and that other stuff that is part of life.

In an era of shrinking natural resources and expanding midriffs, low nutritional values and high cholesterol, and as the rate of type 2 diabetes skyrockets among our youth, and especially among youth in poor communities, it is urgent that kids experience and learn about healthy eating.

Seems to me that the Edible Schoolyard could provide the framework for a rich, integrated curriculum with depth and substance (no pun intended). Also could open the door to the broader topic of sustainability, including green practices, stewardship, xeriscape, and energy conservation.