The Green Room

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Parent Resources

About The Green Room

"The Green Room," the outdoor classroom near School #2, was made possible by the STAR Foundation and the Moore family. The idea for this area originated from the students in my class. One day, I had the students sit on the windowsill with sketch pads. The task was to design a space that could replace the undeveloped and overgrown area outside our classroom window. I arranged for the students to present their ideas to a landscape architect from our community. With student input and assistance from the STAR Foundation and the Moore family, the outdoor space became a reality.

I enjoy using the outdoor classroom for publishing parties for Writer's Workshop and for science lessons, including planting activities in the organic farming area. It is a great place to bring the students to read on a nice day. The hardscaped area includes an arched area and benching that makes it an ideal place for student presentations. This area worked well for "The Northeast State Fair" and "Take Me Out to the Ballpark Night."

The "Picket Fence Project," sponsored by the STAR Foundation, as well as the "Kindness Rocks" project have certainly made the area more colorful and meaningful for the students.

About Organic Farming

The organic school farming area, located in "The Green Room," includes two raised garden beds. One of the beds has a cold frame that was provided by the STAR Foundation. Three Paw Paw trees and four Asian Pear trees, provided by the Southampton Shade Tree Commission, are thriving organically in this area.

For the past two years, my students have planted lettuce. At harvest time, it has been fun to see the students enjoy lettuce wraps.

It has been particularly interesting to learn how to pollinate our Paw Paw trees. Paw Paws are pollinated by flies, rather than bees. They can also be manually pollinated. Last spring, the students in my class moved the pollen from flower to flower with small paintbrushes and Q-tips. This year, our trees have Paw Paws for the first time, and they should be ready to harvest this fall!