Dows Lane Third-Graders Gain Botanical Knowledge in School Garden

IRVINGTON, NY — Dows Lane Elementary School third-grades got a chance to enhance their study of scientific classification by getting out of the classroom and into the school’s garden to investigate different botanical families.

Facilitated by PTSA member Delina Codey, the students used taste, touch, smell and visual observation to identify similarities and differences between plants in the carrot, mint, nightshade, squash and aster families, according to a district spokesman.

Dows Lane Principal Deborah Mariniello said the exercise had valuable.

“It was a great, hands-on way for students to understand the process of scientific classification,” she said.

Students compared carrots, parsley, fennel and Queen Anne's lace in the carrot family; basil, mint, oregano, thyme, lavender and bee balm in the mint family; tomatoes, potatoes and ground cherries in the nightshade family; and cucumbers and squash in the squash family.

They also studied the aster family, which includes sunflowers, lettuce and zinnias, by drawing pictures of the flowers.

Photo caption: Dows Lane Elementary School third-grade students in their school’s garden as part of a study on scientific classification. Photo credit: Irvington Union Free School District.