Take some time...

A pleasure a day keeps stress away.
~Ethel Roskies

This school year has gotten off to a very rough start to say the least.  As a result, it has been one stressful moment followed by another equally frantic one.  There has barely been enough time in the day to catch one's breath.  I have felt the weight of the stress sitting on me and try as I might not to let it get to me, it has.

Deadline after deadline after another stinkin' deadline and the stress continues to pile on suffocating me.  I reached my breaking point this weekend (as fellow facebookers may have noticed).  In an attempt to regain some sanity back into my harried days, I rushed down to my school with a car full of soil, clearance flowers, and Basil.  We worked in the garden for an hour or so and I felt some semblance of peace returning.

This morning, I was determined to start the week of right.  Despite some emails that upset me, I took my first graders outside and introduced them to the garden (a slight deviation from the week's lesson plans).  We talked about the flowers and the parts of the plants.  We discussed what plants need and how these in the garden were going to get them.  They learned where the tools were kept and how to properly use them.  But most importantly, they got their hands dirty.

At 9 a.m. in the morning sunlight, 6 little first graders got their first experience planting life.  They probably even had their first experience being encouraged to get dirty during school hours.  Even I, in my ill-thought out ensemble (dress and heels), had dirty knees and hands by the time the endeavor was over.  I even found some dirt on the tip of my nose an hour later.

In that little moment of time, I saw true joy on their faces and felt peace in my soul.  My favorite photo of the morning captured their beaming faces perfectly and reminding me that this is why I teach.  Despite the politics, surmounting stress, daily grind, and constant hurdles-I teach to experience the rare moments of unbridled happiness in a child's eyes.

Now, if only I can remember that as the year continues its relentless march onward to the stressful tasks ahead.

Garden is coming along

It has been a very long and frustrating journey but there is finally something to see with the garden.  It makes it a tad easier to plug along raising funds and getting donations.  There is still a long way to go before it will be ready for use in my thesis though.  Until then, I'll continue looking for any possible donations that may come along.

The Lorax has been busy

In the last two weeks, the Lorax has remained focused on the garden for the fall while I have been swamped with paperwork and end of the year commitments.

First, he put together a reflection journal that the students will get a chance to take home with him.  They will journal about a way they experienced nature with the Lorax that afternoon and bring him and the journal back to school the next day.

Then, he transformed the "Rock Star Hall of Fame" mirror to a garden oasis that will hang on the wall outside my room next to the photo wall of garden happenings.

Finally, he found a brand new garden hose that was donated by the school guidance counselor for next year!  This is the first tangible donation I have received for the garden.

Remember, if you'd like to donate, there are still many ways you can.  Just let me know and we will find what is best (from monetary donations, advice, to physical grunt work in the middle of summer).

DonorsChoose.org

I have created an account with DonorsChoose.org for the garden next year.  But, I need your help.  Please spread the word to people you know that may be interested in donating to a classroom project (Email, Facebook, this blog etc.).

You can find out more about this project, make donations, and keep updated on its funding progress by clicking here.

Remember that contributions are tax-deductible and each donor will receive a personal thank-you note written by one of my students in the fall.  Once this project is fully funded, we will have many of the supplies that will be needed to start the garden and make successful.

So...

Support a good cause, inspire a generation of gardeners and nature lovers, and...  

Remember what the Lorax said:

Found

The perfect spot to construct a garden for my thesis research.

The south side

New beginnings

Yesterday I finally received approval from my principal to begin constructing a container garden on my school property.  While this does benefit the school grounds and school community to some degree, really it is to give me something to do for my thesis.  Bawahahahaha (maniacal laughter).  Hopefully I haven't bitten off more than I can chew but we'll see.  Periodically, I'll post about the progress as this gets off the ground and grows legs of its own...