What is URBAN ROOTS?
The Urban Roots Program at PS84 is an herb and vegetable garden on the school’s enclosed second floor courtyard. Through Urban Roots, every child at PS84 has the opportunity to dig in the soil and learn first-hand how fruits and vegetables are grown. Students are able to select the herbs and vegetables they plant, study their growth and then use their harvest in class cooking projects and in the school cafeteria. The garden is being incorporated into the school’s science curriculum, and wellness and health initiatives, and also serves to foster community and encourage teamwork in our urban children.
This is the first phase of the development of our 2nd floor courtyard into a science garden. Urban Roots is our vision to create a place for the URBAN children of PS84 to learn hands-on critical environmental science and wellness concepts, incorporating where food comes from, how energy is used to grow food, and how that energy is transformed into fruits and vegetables, providing energy for healthy growth of their own bodies.
Thanks to our two grantors, Citizens Committee of New York, and Grow NYC, as well as support from our very own PTA, we are able to roll out this program to our entire school this year. See our pilot testing phase photos from “seed planting day” on April 14-15, 2011 in the slideshow below.
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