The Troy Howard Middle Schooll: Belfast, ME

Where students practice responsibility in the community we live in by working with the Belfast Coop, Soup Kitchen, Farmer's Market, area restaurants and the School District Lunch programs.

Molded Gourds and Much More Hands are the Best Learning Tools Educational Fair 2009 Weaving a Twig Hut Maine Arts Grant Awarded Our Garden in Down East Magazine President and Our Garden Growing Points THMS earn Ribbons- 2008 THMS gardeners dig deep The Customers Ate My Homework NGA Nat. Award 2007 This how our garden grows Students Sell at Coop Scott's Teacher of the Year Award A Taste for Learning Garden Articles P. Press: Growing Trends Master Gardeners Cut Flowers Strong Bodies and Minds School Visitors Nat. Teachers of the Year: Greenhouse Models Greenhouse Models in Library Education Weekly Reading, Writing, Weeding and Seeding Schools lend a green thumb Students Serve the Governor Agricultural Grant MAITC Conference & Awards Foundation Scholarship MAITC Teacher of the Year Our Harvest Lunch Head Start Visit Teacher Travels to Cuba Weaving a Community Academic Fair 2007 Garden Club Visits THMS Harvest Reaps Ribbons 2007 Country Classroom District Harvest 2007 Sub-Zero Healthy Greens

The Troy Howard Middle School Garden Project

Garden and Greenhouse Project Summary

The Purpose
To grow empowered-academically successful young people who integrate sustainability into their lives by producing and learning to satisfy their needs locally. View our Garden Brochure.

Mission Statement
     Our mission is to create a district wide agricultural project that promotes healthy living. At the Troy Howard Middle School we strive to integrate the school and its land with the community.

     Our goal is to engage all students in a journey of discovery through gardening projects that achieve Maine science, math, technology and social studies learning results, produce nutritious food and pioneer action-research for sustainability Curriculum Overview. At the heart of the gardening program are the young people excited by making a real difference in their school and community.

     The program provides SAD 34 educators a framework and activities that integrate gardening and our watershed within the curriculum. This is being achieved through teacher development workshops, school-community partnerships and in-class teaching that facilitates inquiry-based student projects producing compost, earthworms, organic food, seeds, seedlings, knowledge and skills to share and sell, student-run businesses and community apprenticeships - that grow empowered, academically successful young people.

Beginning the Year
    Students start each school year in a one week Farmer's Market Training, comprised of 35 learning and assessment stations. Since the fall is such a busy time in the garden, students begin their Garden Apprenticeship the first day of class and attempt to have as many different experiences as they can. At the end of the eight week apprenticeship students are ready to interview for a position in one of the garden divisions. Specific job responsibilities are created as the students define their interests and abilities.

History
     The Troy Howard Middle School Garden Project encompasses an outdoor learning experience by providing a school-wide garden and greenhouse project in which all children in Maine School Administrative District 34 (MSAD #34) can participate. The garden project was established in 2001-2002. Each year the garden project has expanded to include the involvement of more students and staff. The greenhouse was built in the summer of 2002 and the farm stand was completed the following spring.

     The purpose of the garden is to allow the students to learn experientially through an integrated curriculum. Concepts such as where our food comes from, how to grow, harvest and prepare vegetables and fruit and the key to healthy soils and choices are developed.   Since it’s inception, this project has gained the attention of the media, community members and other school districts. It is seen as both a regional and national model for school agricultural programs.

    This project has gone through three major phases of development, with each step bringing more pride and excitement to the program. The outdoor learning environment has expanded with trails, a pond and streams project, apple tree restoration and an heirloom seed garden. All of these projects are located on the 86 acre Troy A. Howard Middle School site in Belfast, Maine.

Today
     The garden provides nutritious, whole foods that are used district-wide in the school lunch program. In 2002, approximately 4000 pounds of food were harvested. Of that 1785 pounds, valued at $985, were incorporated into the school food services menus. Some of the food produced were donated to local soup kitchens and food pantries thereby teaching community responsibility and social awareness.

    The remaining produce was sold at the THMS Farmer’s Market to MSAD 34 families and the community (or given directly to students) and the local food Coop, thereby creating a small source of revenue to reinvest in the project. In 2003 -2008, our students grew another 36,600 lbs. of food for distribution. This fall we've had a wonderful harvest of over one-hundred vegetable varieties well exceeding 3 tons. The garden is also a supplier to various home economics lessons and has turned into a hotbed of year round math challenges .

     The greenhouse was planted for the first time in the fall of 2002. A variety of herbs, vegetables and flowers are grown from seeds or starts. Fresh greens are sold to the district cafeteria program, local food coop, through the school farm stand and to individual staff through the winter months. Two unheated hoop houses are also maintained to provide additional greens for our local soup kitchen and a place for student research.

The Garden Project affords the students the opportunity to work collaboratively, solve problems as a team and foster a strong sense of self-confidence while gaining an appreciation for the value of agriculture. Staff utilize the garden and greenhouse for projects with students in the areas of art, plant experimentation, math, earth science, Maine history, writing & research, nutrition and economics. A mentoring program has also been established which pairs 7th & some 8th grade students with younger students from various local elementary schools.

The Pizza Garden has flourished, providing all of the ingredients needed to make a delicious pizza (all we need is a water buffalo to provide us milk for mozzarella cheese).

Bean-hole-beans are prepared from the Maine History Garden, researched and designed by students in an attempt to make a connection with Maine's agricultural history.

The Maine Laptop Initiative has been a big help in moving the garden project forward. As part of the seventh grade economics program, students run businesses utilizing the laptops for research and interviews, designing brochures, maintaining a garden database/ spreadsheet, building web pages, creating multimedia presentations, business cards and garden catalogs.

     Discussions are ongoing with the MSAD 34 Food Service Manager, the Belfast Food Co-Op, soup kitchens and food pantries regarding their needs for produce. We provide fresh, naturally grown produce for each of these services. The students also manage a beautiful garden stand which sells to the local school community. Master Gardeners, University Extension Service and MOFGA have also offered their professional expertise to support THMS Garden Project.

     Our cut flower garden has brought much pleasure to many of our classrooms with the constant supply of fresh flowers they provide. This was begun as a Master Gardener Project by Anna Kessler and Lynn Pussic, Master Gardener Volunteers.

    Start up funds and supplies for the Troy Howard Middle School Garden project came from grants, local donations and MSAD 34 financial and human resources. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension, USDA, Cornell and local experts have provided technical assistance. Our community friends have been the key to making this project grow. Student dedication and perserverance running the program has been its greatest strength

Most Recently
     Feeding humans is not where it ends at the Troy Howard Middle School. Our most recent efforts involve working to re-establish the natural habitat that once flourished on our 86 acre school grounds. This has led students to work towards building a bird sanctuary, raising and harvesting wheat for bread, developing seed-saving technologies, practicing greenhouse chemistry, building a demonstration forest program, creating a pond irrigation system and prefecting a thermal solar hoop house. Our school will continue to reach out in an effort to build partnerships with the local agricultural community and professional support persons.

    The Troy Howard Middle School Garden Program will grow young people with the knowledge, values and practical skills to grow food. Our staff strives to empower-academically successful young people who integrate sustainability into their lives learning to satisfy their needs locally. The curriculum attempts to integrate core, traditional subjects and state assessments through hands-on engagement.

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This site was created and is maintained by Steven Tanguay