The garden is blooming and in full use! Students and teachers are currently observing seasonal change, planting, weeding and of course playing in the Gator Gardens. April 15th was our first Garden Clean Up Day and Westgators and the beautiful sunshine came out in full force to help clean up the deadfall and prepare the soil for our planing season. This was a great success, it is amazing what 400 children can do when they work together! Students learned about the importance of leaving dandelions in the garden for now to feed the hungry bees as they wake from their hibernation. Students composted deadfall and cleaned the garbage that had blown in over the winter. This week many students noticed with wonder that our beautiful crab apple tree was in bloom and a beautiful bunch of daffodils awoke! Kindergarten students have been spending time in the garden during their mardis dehors/outdoor Tuesdays! The students natural wonder is so great that the teachers can use their interest in the outdoors to build French language, encourage positive social interaction, and infuse Numeracy skills. The "Club de Jardinage" meets in the garden each Monday at lunch and is working on raising awareness in the school, weeding, planting and caring for our beautiful space. Last week we learned how to identify une mauvaise herbe/weed and the week before planted seeds into compostable vessels that will be added to our raised bin after the May long weekend. A recent conversation with the students ended with the Club de Jardinage students wondering "How will we keep our plants alive in the summer?" If you are interested in helping us weed and water the garden in the summer please sign up using the link below. With the summers being so hot and dry, we are hoping to water our gardens twice a week through the summer. If your family helps even once it will make a huge difference! signup.com/go/rpGerJv This fall, thanks to parent volunteers maintaining our gardens through the summer, a group of Grade 2 classes was able to harvest what they had planted in Grade 1 and make a vegetable soup! What a great learning experience for the students.
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Friends of Gator Gardens Fundraising Campaign “What is a garden if not a miniaturization and a celebration of the place we are in, the universe?” Charles Jencks The Gator Gardens is successfully underway! A huge part of Phase 1 was completed in the late summer. You can expect to see many classes taking advantage of this outdoor learning area as spring approaches! We would like to thank all parents for their generous support of this project; be it financial contribution or time spent weeding and watering. We would like to include benches and tables as part of the outdoor learning space and are kindly asking for your help to raise funds to purchase 4 bench tables and 3 backless benches. This would enable us to complete Phase 1 of Gator Gardens. Our goal is to raise $5000 with the “Friends of Gator Gardens” fundraising campaign. These funds will pay for the benches, tables, and installations costs, such as placing concrete pads and labour. Any monetary donation is appreciated as we strive to meet our fundraising goal. Supporting the development of a space for contemplation and learning is a lovely way to celebrate the memories our children and students have created at Westgate. All donations over $50 are eligible for a tax receipt, if requested, please indicate on the order form. Please consider your extended family, work, businesses and other networks as an option for making a combined donation. Friends of Gator Gardens that desire will be recognized on a commemorative plaque, according to the following sponsorship levels.
Payment can be made by cheque or cash, with cheques payable to the Westgate School Parents’ Society. Please return the attached form with cash or cheque by Friday, March 9th. If you have any questions or would like more information about the Gator Gardens Project, please contact [email protected]. We sincerely thank you for your support, Westgate Grounds Committee |