Garden in the Classroom: ESL in Action

We have been busy in class.

The seeds grew to seedlings. Now the seedlings grow a little everyday.

The students make hanging planters from recycled bottles. We will plant the seedlings in these. The students also make more paper roll seed starters. We will plant more seeds in these. We are finding new ways to use old materials. The students are learning about recycling.

The materials

The students plant the seedlings. They put the soil in the bottles. Then they put the seedlings in the soil. They work together. When they work together they have fun!

Planting is messy! We clean the room after we plant.

The students observe their plants every morning. Every student has a plant. Some students have more than one plant.

They touch the soil. Is the soil dry? The plant needs water. Is the soil wet? The plant doesn't need water.

The students measure their plants every day. They learn to use the ruler.

 

The United States does not use the metric system. They learn a new system with inches and feet and fractions.

They take a picture of their plant every day. They learn to use a digital camera.

They observe their plants everyday. They write a record about their plants. 

Records are important for many jobs. Home Attendants write records about the patients. Maintenance workers write records about the buildings.

Records are important for finding jobs. The students write a record for their job search. They write the name of the company, important information, and changes.

The students learn about fractions. Fractions are difficult! The students practice with word problems. They make new problems to test their classmates.

To make these word problems, students worked in groups. They used their observation records. They took a photo for the question. I emailed students their photos. They learned to download attachments, format a Word Document, insert a photo, up load the document and then email it back to me!

The students now teach new students how to make the planters and plant new plants.

Abdiel adds used coffee grounds to the plants. Coffee grounds are a natural fertilizer.

Our garden is very big now!

In class this week, students prepare to make more instructional videos. 

They will make videos to teach you how to make a self-watering planter. 

Look for their new videos coming soon!