Annual Report 2016-2017 · PEAS - Annual Report 2016-17 An edible education places the child at the center of their learning. Through holistic, inclusive, culturally-responsive pedagogy

Annual Report

2016-2017

Connecting communities to the natural world through gardening and outdoor education.

www.peascommunity.org

Garden and Outdoor Education Homegrown in Austin, TX!PEAS began in 2011 as a collective of educators, students, parents & community members operating the

school and community organic farm at Cunningham Elementary in Austin, Texas.

http://www.peasfarm.weebly.com/

http://www.peasfarm.weebly.com/

PEAS - Annual Report 2016-17

PEAS is dedicated to connecting communities to the natural world with a focus on school and community gardening and outdoor learning in order to inspire the preservation and conservation of our precious planet. In 2016-17 we completed our first year of programming and it was received with great enthusiasm from teachers, students, parents, administrators and community members.


An edible education places the child at the center of their learning. Through holistic, inclusive, culturally-responsive pedagogy and practices, students develop skills, knowledge and behaviors that enrich their academic and non-academic lives, bolster their individual, community, and global identities, and cultivate meaningful engagement with their own health, the health of their communities, and the health of the environment. A child-centered theory and practice, edible education engages every context within a child’s learning, from the traditional classroom to the kitchen and garden classrooms, the lunchroom, as well as their home and broader communities.

Edible Education - What Is it? and Why It Works

Source: The Edible Schoolyard Project

Collaboration - PEAS’ programs are an ongoing collaboration between our educators, program managers, school leadership, parents, teachers, students, and community partners.

Communication - Sharing and listening to understand are key components of PEAS’ programs. The more diverse experiences we have access to, whether first hand by hearing others’ stories, the more we all learn and truly become enriched.

Connection - Our programs emphasize the importance our interconnectedness. Our relationships with each other, with all organisms on this planet, and the planet itself determine our sustainability as a species.

Cultural proficiency - As the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the water we drink are vital to ALL citizens around the globe, a focus on their cultivation and conservation through a culturally responsive pedagogy is at the center of our edible and outdoor education lessons.

Creativity - Our lessons take place in outdoor learning spaces that encourage creativity through open ended explorations where multi-intelligences can flourish simultaneously.

Critical Thinking - PEAS values student-centered learning which encourages problem-based, inquiry learning opportunities for teachers and their classes.

PEAS’ Programs Reinforce AISD’s Power Skills for 21st Century Learning(The 6 Cs)

Why Students Need Nature During the School Day & How It Benefits Their Education

According to the Children and Nature Network organization,-children are spending over 50 hours a week on some type of electronic device.-children spend over 90% of their time indoors.-obesity rates among children have risen from 7% in 1980 to 18% in 2012.-pre-school kids are the fastest growing market for anti-depressants.Source: http://www.childrenandnature.org/

In addition, according to The Edible Schoolyard, the benefits of edible and outdoor education during the school day are myriad and include:

-boosting academic performance;-improving attitudes towards math, science, and care for the environment;-increasing knowledge of science, environmental awareness, life skills, and knowledge about the natural world;-increasing student activity levels, willingness to take healthy risks;-improving student behavior.

Source: https://edibleschoolyard.org/sites/default/files/Benefits%20of%20EE%20-%20Literature%20Summaries%209.4.12%20_TOC.pdf

PEAS’ Evaluation Process

PEAS emphasizes a holistic approach to program evaluation. While it is important to collect quantitative data about key points of our programs, it is equally important to collect qualitative information in which we can often provide immediate responses on an ongoing basis.Methods used:

● Teacher surveys● Student surveys● Teacher interviews and conferences● Student journals and field assignments● Class observations● Educator observations● Class oral reflections● Educator reflections and interviews

This year’s lesson topics:*

● Garden tasting tours (throughout the year)● What seeds need● Force and motion in the garden (weeding)● Matter in the garden/Signs of fall● Pumpkins● Seed germination/soil temperature● Garden explorations using scientific tools● Tops and bottoms (plant parts we eat)● Radishes● Carrots● Environmental factors that affect the garden● Weather in the garden● Monarch Heroes - (w/ NWF)

● Spinach● Soil dissection● Compost and the nitrogen cycle (fungi,

bacteria, invertebrates)● Water cycle/Water conservation● Entomology - beneficial and harmful insects

in the garden● Tap roots and fibrous roots● Pollination● Flower to fruit● Seeds we can eat● Seed Dispersal● Salad Day

*Not every topic was presented at every school


As a new nonprofit, PEAS initiated our Education in the Garden programming for the first time this school year and it has been received with great enthusiasm! We provided Education in the Garden programming in eight Austin elementary schools (7 school day programs, and 1 after school program) to over 1500 students.

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“The PEAS program brings meaningful lessons that educate our students about sustainability and promote caring for our earth.”

-Alicia Olguin, pre-k teacher, Brooke Elementary

This past year PEAS provided Education in the Garden lessons to over 1500 students on a consistent basis throughout the school year.

School Name Number of Students Served

by Program

Number of Classes Involved

Frequency Total # of Lessons

CurricularFocus

Cunningham 415 18 3 workshops for each class

54 Art-Science

Zilker 560 27 Monthly 216 Science

Sunset Valley 175 8 2 x a month 128 Science

Menchaca 102 5 2 x a month 80 Science

Brooke 98 5 2 x a month 80 Science, Health

Perez 94 5 2 x a month 80 Science, Health

Lucy Read 148 10 2 x a month,Spring only

80 Science

Barrington 12 1 Weekly, after school, spring only

8 Cross-Curricular


End of Year Feedback from Teachers

“Wow, we loved all of our lessons! The children enjoyed the stories, LOVED working in the garden and then having the opportunity to taste the vegetables.”

- 1st grade teacher


PEAS gets students outside for learning!

68% of teachers who responded to our feedback survey said they

got their students outside for learning more this school year

than in the previous year.

46% of teachers said they went from getting students outside for

learning once or twice a semester to two to three

times per month!


100% of teachers who responded said our lessons were relevant to the curriculum they were teaching this year. 97% of those teachers said the

lessons were ‘very relevant’, or ‘extremely relevant’.


100% of teachers who responded to our survey felt their students were ‘engaged’, ‘very engaged’, or ‘extremely engaged during our lessons.


100% of teachers who responded to our survey gave PEAS’ programs a ‘good’, ‘great’, or ‘excellent’ rating!


Did you or you class have a FAVORITE PEAS lesson? If so, which was it? Why?Teacher Responses:

● Insect Hunt! The kids couldn't believe we actually WANTED them to find bugs! Capturing them in the jars and examining them was definitely their favorite lesson!

● Wow, we loved all of our lessons! The children enjoyed the stories, LOVED working in the garden and then having the opportunity to taste the vegetables.

● They were all wonderful, I would not be able to select one. The kids enjoyed all of them.● I have only had two lessons so far, but both of them were fantastic and interactive.● I liked the recent lessons on seed dispersal and pollination and plant life cycles because those topics

are so clearly aligned with science TEKS.● My students loved the bug catching! They were especially interested in using the chart to identify

what kind of bug/insect they had.


FAVORITE PEAS’ Lesson - Continued● They really loved the painting with mud. I think getting the opportunity to play and get dirty is really

fun for the older grade levels. (Art-Science lesson on soil particle sizes)● We "hunted" for bugs in the garden! It was a lesson rich in vocabulary and relevant learning

experiences that the kids loved!● Where they looked at different kinds of soil and the different kinds of vegetables that the students

got to hold, smell, etc.● Discovering signs of spring and identifying and finding seeds in our garden were their very two

favorite lessons. No sure which one to choose. The students are still looking for and discovering new seeds in our garden, grass, playground and in their homes. Also, they love to see and talk about their Signs of Spring product that is display in the classroom.

● My students enjoyed all the lessons because they were all hands on activities.● I enjoyed all lessons, but I think the students really enjoyed the making of the salad using veggies

from our own garden.



End of Year Feedback from Students

"This salad scores a 99.9% rating. It lost a tenth of a percent because there just wasn't enough." - 3rd grader on Salad Day (ingredients grown in the school garden)


PEAS introduces students to new healthy food options!

64% of students tried at least one NEW fruit, vegetable, or

herb from the garden.

PEAS changes students attitudes about the foods they

eat for the positive!50% of students liked a fruit,

vegetable, or herb they had not previously liked.


What Students Are Saying!*Quotes from end of the year feedback forms.

I never knew there were so many things

living in the soil!

Before I did not like kohlrabi, but now I love it!

There is so much water in the world

and so little for drinking. We really need to take care of

it!

I’ve had tomatoes before, but they were

way better fresh!

I loved learning about all of the bugs that are good for the garden: the predators, pollinators, and decomposers

I didn’t know 78% of the air we breathe is

nitrogen until we learned about the

nitrogen cycle.

When we looked at buttercup pollen under

the microscope it looked like popcorn. That was

so cool!

*Spellings and typos have been corrected.


Partners and Supporters

Government:City of Austin Office of SustainabilityTexas Parks and Wildlife Department

Foundations:Whole Kids Foundation

Nonprofit:National Wildlife FederationKeep Austin BeautifulSustainable Food CenterChildren in Nature Collaborative of Austin

Business:Evolve IPLandWest Design GroupCasa GarciaClean TagResolution GardensHillside FarmacyElite Mobile ServicesRealty Austin (Amy Bernhard)

More to come in 2017-18!

Documents

Annual Report 2016-2017 · PEAS - Annual Report 2016-17 An edible education places the child at the center of their learning. Through holistic, inclusive, culturally-responsive pedagogy