Woodland students helping Harvest Garden
Eight-year-old Kate Shenderovsky's little hands carefully held the small sprig of a summer squash waiting to be planted in the soil at the garden behind Woodland Elementary West School in Gages Lake.
Woodland West second-grade students planted fruit and vegetables for the 6th Annual Harvest Garden as they learned about the growth of plants from agriculture educator Cheryl Pytlarz, also known as Farmer Cheryl. The produce will be donated to the Warren Township Food Pantry in the fall to help those in need.
"I planted squash for people who don't have food," said Shenderovsky, of Gurnee. "It was kind of fun and it was nice that our school did this. I learned you should help people that don't have stuff."
In the garden, Farmer Cheryl had the students re-enact the growth cycle of plants. The children pretended to grow as she alternated between holding up a paper sun and clouds. Next, she sprayed a light mist on the children and, finally, she brought out a toy bee to teach them about pollination.
"They learn about the connection of the plants while they are growing to the sun, the rain, the soil and pollination with the honey bee," explained Farmer Cheryl.
The second-grade students began by planting seeds in the classroom and watched them sprout. As the students move onto the third grade, they will continue learning about plants in their science curriculum when the vegetables will be harvested and donated to the Warren Township Food Pantry.
"This is fantastic! What a wonderful display of volunteerism to help the needy in our community," second-grade teacher Linda Cook said after watching her students enthusiastically plant the little sprouts. "I am very proud of my students."
After returning to school from the summer break, the incoming third-graders have a chance to see the ripened vegetables as they tour the garden, harvest the produce and finally taste the fruits of their labor. This is the sixth year that students have donated to the food pantry and they have given close to 2,500 pounds of produce since the program was started.