Haynes+EEC+2008

We are an Early Education Center located on the corner of Blue Hill Ave and Quincy Street in Roxbury. We have two K0 classrooms (3 and 4 year olds), two K1 classrooms (4 and 5 year olds), four K2 classrooms (5 and 6 year olds), and four 1st Grade classes. Our school opened in 1998 and many of our teachers have been here since the start. We love science and can't wait to get growing! The following staff just attended the January 26th training: KO/K1 Teacher Marie Mullen; K2/1st Grade Teachers Nancy Gilson and Solange Marson; Principal Valerie Gumes; and Science Specialist/SLUG Site Coordinator Teresa Strong. As we begin this process, we hope to get most, if not all of our school community involved in our SLUG program. February 15: Room 204 K2 students started tomato seeds in their GrowLab for June harvest and observed sprouted bean seeds. Room 102 K1 students started bean seeds in their GrowLab this week and observed sprouted bean seeds. Our basil and lettuce plants from the SLUG training are doing well in the GrowLabs. Teresa went to the Mass Ag in the Classroom conference and brought back a wick-hydroponic system with basil and swiss chard, as well as individual sage, chives, parsley, and fennel plants. Everything is doing fine under the GrowLabs--we're hoping they all survive next week's vacation. March 29: Some of our bean plants have fruit now, our tomato plants are two inches tall, three classroom have planted many other kinds of seeds in their grow labs, and six classrooms have thriving worm bins. We are waiting for the delivery of the compost bins and compost so we can start our pea seeds outside. The 3 and 4 year olds in Room 101 successfully hatched 10 out of 15 chick eggs--they are SO excited! We're hoping to send some soil in for testing in the next week. April 2: Room 201 ate their first green bean--they have officially grown their own food. April 11: We got our compost delivery today. The truck was too big to get into the school yard and not tall enough to dump over the fence, so it dumped on the sidewalk. We spent from 1:30 to 7 pm shovelling and moving the beautiful, black stuff over the fence and into the school yard. It's more than we thought it would be, but we'll find ways of putting it all to use. We got some great pictures of the kids helping with buckets. One child joyfully remarked: "I want to be a scientist when I grow up!" Who knew compost could be so fun! April 29: Over school vacation, the chicks from room 101 found a new home in Ludlow, MA. Thank you Lenore Paul! We submitted a proposal:"We Love Vegetables and Our Earth" to DonorsChoose.org for 12 sets of child-sized gardening tools Monday, April 21 and found out this past Sunday that the proposal got full funding!

May 9: What a busy week! First grade teacher Toni Harrison started marigolds, sunflowers, and herbs in her GrowLab the week before April vacation. In three weeks, she transferred the plants into larger pots that her students decorated. Her marigolds are now in bloom, ready for Mother's Day. Outside, the peas are up, the daffodils and tulips are dying back, and the tomatoes and basil are being hardened off. This weeks, all the first graders started seeds inside as part of the BPS Organisms science curriculum. They also planted lettuce seeds in the raised bed and made observations of the plants/trees outside. The 3 and 4 year olds in Marie Mullen's class now have duck eggs in their incubator--three more weeks to go! On Wednesday, Bobby Brown from the Recycle Center met with Ms. Gumes and Teresa to start planning more raised beds/planting areas and an outdoor classroom area for the schoolyard. And finally, we received bulbs for our fifth Growlab--thanks to Laura!