BEDFORD – The Lincoln Elementary School Green Thumbs program is continuing the tradition by allowing students in grades K-6 to participate to learn how to properly take care of plants.
Running the program at the school since 2016, Mrs. Jamie Hooten has worked diligently on acquiring and providing the necessary materials to teach children at the school about gardening with the assistance of additional master gardeners Beth Houlette and Susan Scherschel.
“We do a variety of things in the group. Today we are working on using recycled water bottles to make portable greenhouses for the kids to take home and watch over spring break. Every week, they will work on something that they can take home to watch grow.”
Learning about multiple different plants and ways to grow and care for the plants is the main point of emphasis with Green Thumbs, allowing children another avenue of learning year round.
“The kids grow a lot of different plants, such as perennials, basil, parsley, cilantro, black cherry tomatoes, and others throughout the year. This is a year-long group that allows children to learn more about gardening, all for free. The thing that is great is once the colder months come in, we can still grow things in our STEM lab to keep learning together as a group.”
The group works together to take care of the plants and garden while selling some such as the spider plants they started growing in September of 2021 for $5 at farmers’ markets. The program gives back to itself while also receiving donations from the community.
“During the school year, we focus on small gardens and similarities between some plants. At a young age the plants, look similar to each other, but as they grow, they begin to change. Once the summer arrives, the kids will grow plants to sell at farmers’ markets to help raise money for the program. I apply for Donors choose grants, Walmart donates a lot of supplies, and tractor supply is truly helpful as well.
Lincoln Elementary Green Thumbs continues to improve and provide students with the necessary tools to succeed in something other than the classroom, by teaching children to work together in order to make something great.
