GardeningBuilding on the Enviro-Schools ideas – some practical

applications in a Secondary School

REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE IN THE CLASSROOM

Increasing your students’ environmental literacy

Group activity

Reduce• Use recycled paper• Encourage students to use both sides of their paper when writing or

photocopying• Create a school worm farm• Create a school compost bin• Introduce the ‘no waste lunch’ idea• Encourage students to conserve water and electricity• Rotate a list of students to check that the taps, lights and computers are

turned off each night to conserve energy• Educate students on the journey the storm and wastewater from the

school takes, to understand what should and shouldn’t be put down each drain.

• Encourage students to use easily washable, recyclable drink bottles• Use water based paints• Use environmentally friendly products within your classroom• Encourage students to use resources efficiently i.e. not wasting supplies

Re-use

• Have a bin for paper that can be reused i.e. only written on one side

• Use refillable pens and rechargeable batteries• Make recycled bird feeders out of used products• Use cardboard as a weed mat in the school

garden• Reuse magazines, paper, unwanted objects in

art projects

Recycle

• Educate students on the recycling process• Have designated recycling bins with clear

labeling• Recycle computers and technological

equipment• Get students to initiate regular audits of the

practices within the classroom

Other

• Plant native trees• Grow a school/class vegetable patch• Enhance your space with plants• BE A POSITIVE ROLE MODEL

Tips for activities/making the garden fun

• Arty students can do some signs, and sculptures, scarecrows.

• Plant in quirky containers (or paint plain containers quirkily)

• Bird boxes, Bug houses• Technology – raised beds

• Subject-specific – can you think of any jobs for students of specific subjects?

Activities• Sunflower seeds game – dividing to students’ estimated distribution

of world’s wealth, resources. Then distribution again into actual real-life proportions.

• Apple core game – Pretend the Apple is an Earth. Cut out the parts of the apple which represent the proportion of our Earth that we can’t use – covered with snow/ice, too high altitude, desert, sea water (70%), you will only have a small strip of apple left. Then cut out the flesh, leaving only the small strip of skin. This is what we have to use to grow food. Discuss, how are we to look after it?

• Sculptures/scarecrows – build.• Junior classes/form class – build a model of the world’s biggest

vegetables. • Try growing a giant pumpkin (can be a competition between

classes) – make sure you buy a ‘giant’ variety. Research on what to feed it, and how it gets fatter if it drinks a saucer of milk each day!

World’s Record Vegetables (N.B. may already be out of date)

• Beetroot (heavy)• WR: 23.4kg (51.6lb) - Norman Craven - Canada - 2010 • EGVGA: 23.1kg (51.0lb) - Bradley Wursten - Netherlands -

2009• Beetroot (long)• WR: 640cm (21ft 0in) - Peter Glazebrook - United

Kingdom - 2008 • EGVGA: 584cm (19ft 2in) - Peter Glazebrook - United

Kingdom - 2011 NEW• Cabbage• WR: 57.26kg (127.0lb) - Steve Hubacek - United States -

2009 • EGVGA: 50.8kg (112.0lb) - David Thomas - United

Kingdom - 2011 NEW • Carrot (heavy)• WR: 8.61kg (18.81lb) - John Evans - United States - 1998 • EGVGA: 5.90kg (13.0lb) - David Thomas - United Kingdom

- 2011 NEW• Carrot (long)• WR: 584cm (19ft 2in) - Joe Atherton - United Kingdom -

2007 • EGVGA: 403cm (13ft 3in) - Peter Glazebrook - United

Kingdom - 2010

• Celery• WR: 34.0kg (75.0lb) - Ian Neale - United Kingdom - 2011

NEW • EGVGA: 24.4kg (53.8lb) - David Thomas - United Kingdom

- 2011 NEW• Corn (tall)• WR: 9.45m (31ft) - Don Radda - United States - 1946 • EGVGA: 8.22m (27ft 0in) - Bernhard Preis - Germany -

2011 NEW• Cucumber (heavy)• WR: 12.4kg (27.3lb) - Alfred Cobb - United Kingdom -

2003 • EGVGA: 10.13kg (22.4lb) - David Thomas - United

Kingdom - 2011 NEW• Cucumber (long)• WR: 107cm (42.1in) - Ian Neale - United Kingdom - 2011

NEW • EGVGA: 85.5 cm (33.7in) - Bradley Wursten - Netherlands

/ David Thomas - United Kingdom - 2011 NEW • Field Pumpkin• WR: 73.5kg (162lb) - John Mackinnon - Canada - 2011

NEW • EGVGA: 57.2kg (126lb) - Mehdi Daho - France - 2011

NEW

• Kohlrabi• WR: 44.0kg (96.9lb) - Scott Robb - United States - 2006 • EGVGA: 15.5kg (34.2lb) - David Thomas - 2011 NEW• Leek• WR: 8.8kg (19.3lb) - John Soulsby - United Kingdom - 2006 • EGVGA: 7.0kg (15.4lb) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom -

2011 NEW • Long gourd• WR: 135.94in - Glen & Margaret Martin - USA - 2011 NEW • EGVGA: 122.0in - Bradley Wursten - Netherlands - 2011 NEW• Marrow• WR: 93.7kg (206.5lb) - Bradley Wursten - Netherlands - 2009 • EGVGA: 93.7kg (206.5lb) - Bradley Wursten - Netherlands - 2009• Onion• WR: 8.15kg (17.97lb) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom -

2011 NEW • EGVGA: 8.15kg (17.97lb) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom -

2011 NEW• Parsnip (long)• WR: 520.7cm (17ft 1in) - Richard Hope - United Kingdom - 2003 • EGVGA: 418.8cm (13ft 9in) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom

- 2011 NEW• Parsnip (heavy)• WR: 7.85kg (17.3lb) - David Thomas - United Kingdom - 2011

NEW • EGVGA: 7.85kg (17.3lb) - David Thomas - United Kingdom -

2011 NEW• Potato• WR: 4.98 kg (10.98lb) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom

- 2011 NEW • EGVGA: 4.98kg (10.98lb) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom -

2011 NEW• Pepper (sweet)

• EGVGA: 584g (1.29lb) - Mehdi Daho - France - 2011 NEW• Pumpkin• WR: 824.9kg (1818.5lb) - Jim & Kelsey Bryson - Canada -

2011 NEW • EGVGA: 730.8kg (1611lb) - Mehdi Daho - France - 2009• Radish• WR: 31.1kg (68.6lb) - Manabu Oono - Japan - 2003 • EGVGA: 4.48kg (9.9lb) - Peter Glazebrook - United Kingdom -

2010 • Runnerbean• WR: 130cm (4ft 3in) - Harry Hurley - United States - 1997 • EGVGA: 80.5cm (31.8) - Peter Glazebrook - 2011 NEW• Rutabaga/Swede• WR: 38.9kg (85.8lb) - Ian Neale - United Kingdom - 2011 NEW • EGVGA: 34.1kg (75.2lb) - David Thomas - United Kingdom -

2011 NEW• Squash• WR: 674kg (1486.6lb) - Joel Jarvis - Canada - 2011 NEW • EGVGA: 573kg (1263lb) - Andreas Baumert - Germany - 2011

NEW• Sunflower (tall)• WR: 8.03m (26ft 4in) - Hans-Peter Schiffer - Germany - 2009 • EGVGA: 5.30m (17ft 4in) - Thomas Puchner - Austria - 2011

NEW • Sunflower (head)• WR: 82cm (32.25in) - Emily Martin - Canada - 1983 • EGVGA: 70cm (27.6in) - Martin Rudorfer - Germany - 2011 NEW• Tomato• WR: 3.51kg (7.75lb) - Gordon Graham - United States - 1986 • EGVGA: 2.30kg (5.07lb) - Fabrice Boudyo - France - 2010 • Watermelon• WR: 132kg (291.0lb) - Chris Kent - United States - 2010 • EGVGA: 99.5kg (219.0lb) - Stefano Cutrupi - Italy - 2011 NEW

Establishing a garden

• Have a purpose– Medicinal– Culinary– Dye– Aesthetics

birds / habitat