After School STEM Activities
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Our Killip Garden and Garden Club
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Garden and Nutrition Education
The Killip garden has become an integral part of developing STEM at Killip. The garden has grown to be an excellent channel for hands-on project-based learning with the efforts of Killip staff and community partners.
The garden is utilized within every classroom on campus in a way that supports the curriculum and statewide standards. Our fourth graders learn about the scientific method by growing Mystery Herbs and deducing which herb they have. Our second graders plant and take care of beans when they read Jack and the Beanstalk as part of their folktales unit. Fifth graders create vermicomposting bins and learn about all the factors that need to be included in a habitat as part of their science unit.
Aligning the garden curriculum with the academic standards allows garden time not to take away from academic time while still teaching students how to grow and prepare their own food in a sustainable, safe, and financially responsible way that will have benefits throughout their lives.
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Garden Club
Garden Club times during the regular school year:
Before-School Garden Club Tuesday and Thursday from 8:00 am - 9:00 am
Our before-school garden club consists of students who wish to understand the gardening process from seed to table. They learn basic planting techniques and how to care for the plants in our community garden successfully. Students also learn how to harvest, prepare, and cook what they grow and share them with the Killip Community.
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Nutrition Education
Students in Garden and Nutrition Club also get the opportunity to learn how to prepare and compose a balanced and nutrient dense diet in accordance with MyPlate standards and dietary recommendations from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Students have the chance to practice basic knife handling skills, appropriate appliance use (such as dehydrators, stoves, blenders) weight and measurement of solids and liquids, and kitchen safety.
Dehydrator Rental
Families have the opportunity to rent dehydrators through Killip Elementary School Garden and Nutrition. This includes directions for use, how to clean and return the machines, as well as several delicious recipes to try out! If interested you may let your student know to get in touch with our Garden Coordinator Victoria Lewis, or our STEM Coordinator, Sheryl Wells. You will also find contact information listed below.
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Community Involvement
We are always looking for more help and volunteers from the community in the garden! During the growing season, the garden is open to the community to plant, maintain, and harvest. We will be building a new garden for our new school but have a small garden at our temporary site and are close to the Bonito Community Garden. Here we have had the privilege of planting native wildflowers and bushes to contribute to Bonito’s pollinator garden, as well as trees to be transplanted to our new school garden next year. Please contact our garden coordinator, Victoria Lewis, or STEM coordinator, Sheryl Wells, if you are interested in getting involved!
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Produce Pick-Ups
Every Friday, beginning at 11:00 until supplies run out, families come by the Killip bus zone to pick up FREE fresh produce. This produce and other food is provided as a project of the Killip Garden in conjunction with the Flagstaff Family Food Center.
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Special Events
We hope to bring back some of these special activities when we move into the new building.
Fall- Harvest Festival is a celebration of all things regarding local food. The event features tours of the Killip Garden, food booths from local restaurants, games run by Killip staff, and activities from the Arboretum, Refugia Gardens, the YMCA, and so much more.
Winter- Winter Food Pantry is an opportunity for us at Killip to make sure our families have food over the extended school closure for Winter Break. One of our Killip classrooms is turned into a FREE grocery store featuring fresh produce, canned goods, boxed goods, and snacks. All food is collected through a series of food drives hosted by local businesses around Flagstaff.
Spring- Cesar Chavez Day is a community service day where families, community groups, local businesses, and, of course, all of our students, come together to make improvements to our school grounds, including our pond and garden. Volunteers prepare areas for planting. Each year, the projects are chosen by students and executed by teams of individuals from all backgrounds led by our AmeriCorps STEM VISTA member, Garden Coordinator, and other STEM staff.
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Contact Us
Victoria Lewis
Garden, Nutrition, and Green Space Advocate
AmeriCorps Service Member
victoria.lewis@nau.edu
(928) 773-4080 ext 2426
Sheryl Wells
STEM Coordinator
swells@fusd1.org
(928) 773-4080 ext 2426