Last week, pre-K students at Bulloch Academy got to experience the joy of seeing (and tasting!) their first harvest. The students, mostly ages four and five, were paired up with eight graders in Mrs. Julie Anna Boyd’s Exploring Agriculture class, a nine-week course that helps young people deepen their understanding of agriculture. Exploring Agriculture eighth-graders have worked together with the pre-K students throughout the year maintaining the garden beds and tending to the plants.
Back in November, the little ones and the eighth graders pulled weeds and prepared the garden beds, raised wooden planters located right behind the pre-K classrooms. They planted broccoli and strawberries with the hopes of harvesting them later in the year. The prime location of the garden beds makes it easy for the younger students to see the plants each day on their way out to recess.
By January, the vegetables they had planted were well on their way, and, just in time for the early spring weather, the broccoli from their garden and carrots from a local Bulloch County farm were ready to enjoy.
On harvest day, students in Mrs. Boyd’s Exploring Agriculture Class helped the pre-K groups identify which plants could be picked. They also shared some fun facts and read the children a gardening story before celebrating the fruits of their labor with their friends at snack time.
The students in Mrs. Lenny Persinger’s pre-K class enjoyed their freshly harvested veggies at snack time with a little ranch dressing on the side, and most asked for seconds! This shared learning experience gives students the opportunity to learn about agriculture, science, seasons, patience, nutrition, and so much more in a fun and hands-on way.
Enjoying fresh-from-the-garden snacks imparts not only an understanding of where their food comes from, but potentially plants a love of growing and gardening in future generations.