Covenant School Students Plant Bulbs at the Reservoir [VIDEO]

In an effort to further expound upon their expeditionary learning platform, first and second grade students from headed down to the Arlington Reservoir on Thursday afternoon to plant Allium Cernuum bulbs, also known as the nodding onion.

The students are studying where food comes from and this portion of the learning process has them taking a hands-on approach to seeing how plants grow. They had previously gone to an apple orchard to gain a better understanding of how fruit finds its way from a tree branch, all the way to the kitchen table.

“The field work gives kids a concrete experience,” said Tim Walker, who teaches first and second grade at the school. "This is the kind of learning you always hoped they would have."

Martine Gougault, the landscape designer for the committee, explained to the students the proper procedure for how to plant bulbs. She told them no matter how they were placed in the ground, the bulbs would know which way is up.

“Okay now put back the soil and say good luck to the bulbs,” she told the students.

Aside from the initial gross-out they experienced from discovering a worm beneath the soil surface, the children were enamored with the process from start to finish. After a brief planting lesson from Gougault, they broke off into supervised teams of two and began digging and planting their own sections of bulbs.

“It teaches us that it’s fun and you have to put fertilizer because that’s food for the plants,” second-grader Sophie Stiller said.

The boys seemed to be having a blast digging deep into the ground with the shovel, showing off how strong they were and getting their hands full of dirt. The girls were equally excited to be getting their hands dirty, although they did not all enjoy the shoveling as much. Some said they felt their arms getting tired and were more than happy to switch to the planting portion of the work.

“Let’s go find another spot,” first grader Hannah Fish excitedly proclaimed after her group’s initial planting was complete.

The expeditionary learning process attempts to address academic standards through project-based curriculum connected through real world needs. Walker said this format for learning allows the children to delve deeper into what they are studying. He has seen firsthand the difference this has made in helping the students better process the information.

“They are learning by doing," Walker said. "This is when they really come alive."

In addition to a hands-on educational approach, expeditionary learning promotes service work within the community. The students were not simply planting bulbs to learn about the growth process, they were helping to further beautify the reservoir.

As the children wind up this agricultural learning program, they will work closely with the school’s art teacher to create a final project to show the process of their learning experience. The next program will focus on the holidays and will run through Christmas. 

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