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Laurel Tree Wild: think outside - no box needed.

Our Edible Education program focuses on food and food production.  Not just eating and growing food but the cultural, economic and environmental impacts of our food choices and systems-food literacy.  The 8-9 week program addresses cultivating the ground, seeds, transplants, plants, water, mulch, compost and harvesting the bounty.  Students will learn while reading and writing about, as well as doing the tasks associated with the topics above, all in the garden around us.  Our practice is aligned with Benjamin Eichhorn’s (former co-manager of Alice Water’s Edible Schoolyard garden and founder of Grow Your Lunch) three dictums, “Simplicity is key, learn by doing, fresh is best”.

 

Feel free to walk around or ask Amber and Sam for a tour of the grounds.  Our classroom has expanded next door to Villa de Valle too.  We would be more than happy to show it to you.  If you are interested in volunteering let us know as well.  Enjoy!

 

Theater

Middle school students will work as an ensemble to perform a Sixty-Minute Shakespeare production and primary students will perform Folktales from Around the World.  We work on acting techniques, character development, technical elements, and evaluating performance, as well as language skills in understanding plot, vocabulary development, and reading fluency. Students perform for an audience at our Potluck and Performance Community events. Click here to see the outline and assessment rubric for this unit.

Swimming, Climbing, Musical Theater
Students will participate in enrichment classes within our community in the afternoons. Laurel Tree students will join existing community programs, but with a curriculum catered to our students and their specific needs. They will strengthen their self-awareness as active learners by setting personal and group goals as well as refine specific physical skills. Students will be graded on participation, completion of weekly journal assignments, and applicable sustainability standards.  Click here to see the learning goals and calendar for this class.
 

 

Elemental Art
Elemental Art Studio

This component of Laurel Tree Wild teaches the basic elements of art - line, shape, space, form, texture, color - using the four elements of our world - earth, air, fire, water - as project inspiration. In addition, students will use daily mindful observational sketching as a way to encounter and document the natural world.  Click here to see the learning goals for this class.

Watershed Explorers
Watershed Explorers
 

Social Impacts on Watersheds is a seven-week unit that takes sixteen 1st-8th grade students into the field to explore their local watershed.   Students will visit three different locations along the Mad River watershed.  At each site, students will spend two days at three different centers observing and collecting data(Biological, Climate and River, and Earth Survey) The final two days on site will be a student chosen regenerative action on that specific watershed site (signage, trail maintenance, habitat restoration, invasive species removal, working with local agencies, etc.).

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