The Seeds of Knowledge

"Everything that exists is in a manner the seed of that which will be."
~Marcus Aurelius

     Arriving at Sanderlin this morning, groggy from waking up early to grab some new seeds/plants, stakes for the beds, and attempting to fight off illness I wondered what my new students would be like. After having so much time off from planting and teaching, as well as starting at a new school, I was a bit nervous to get back into the swing of things. I ran into Charrie Gibson who helps us develop our lessons and activities in the front office on my way to the garden and she was very excited about introducing me to the three classes of Pre-k and Kindergartners I'd be working with on Thursdays.

     Before my classes arrived I ran around the garden, marking down all the planted crops on our white board and staking the plant and date in front of the assigned beds. I barely had enough time to dig a few trenches before my first class arrived, enthusiastic and ready to get their hands dirty! As I introduced myself the students sat around our log-chair amphitheater fidgety and anxious to answer every question I asked like "what do plants need to grow?" or "what are the rules of the garden?"  They did an amazing job, even when it came to knowing the parts of plants. I was surprised that even children in Pre-K had had some experience at home with gardening. We talked about our favorite fruits and vegetables and decided what we'd plant this semester as a group.

      I walked around and with every right answer distributed sunflower, (purple) green bean, corn, and pumpkin seeds to every student. For being so little they were amazing listeners and everyone held their seeds tight in their hands as we all walked into the garden to take turns planting.

Here we are planting Corn, Pumpkin, and Beans in the "Three Sisters" bed.

Even the teachers helped us plant Sunflowers 

After the planting was over we all learned about predictions. We talked about what the plants would look like in a few weeks, and what would be happening under the soil.

       My favorite part of teaching the first day is getting to meet all my new students. I love joking and testing their memories by asking them my name or the part of a plant that shows up first through the soil. I have a feeling this semester will be amazing at Sanderlin and I can't wait to see the faces of the students when their little shoots start to pop through the ground and they understand what it feels like to create a life from something as small as a seed. 

-Erin Mattick