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=Welcome to the Second Grade Wiki!!=

We are learning about urban gardens.
We are learning about different types of gardens Urban gardens: 5 borough farm Battery Urban Farm Randall's Island Farm Brooklyn Grange Bushwick Campus Farm La Finca del Sur/South Bronx Farm Restaurant rooftop garden Gotham Greens greenhouse

videos to watch: healthy soil vertical gardening outside tower garden raised bed gardening perennials (plants that keep coming back year after year) growing corn growing herbs in containers growing peas greenhouse from bottles

We are learning about the challenges of growing plants in an urban community in a city, peope just have to plan more =Why should urban schools have gardens?= Improve environmental attitudes, especially in younger students.

Instill appreciation and respect for nature that lasts into adulthood.

Increase interest in eating fruits and vegetables and improve attitude toward fruits and vegetables.

Improve social skills and behavior.

=Why should we have trees in urban communities?= Benefits of Trees in Urban Areas Studies show that trees improve air and water quality, reduce flooding, reduce cooling and heating energy needs, increase property values and improve the quality of life for people and wildlife around them. Trees remove air and water pollutants through both their root systems and their leaves. Tree canopies shade buildings, sidewalks, streets and other structures keeping them cooler which reduces air conditioning and other energy needs in summer. roofto urban forest garden rooftop gardening- which trees to put in planters how to grow trees on rooftops best trees for rooftops gardens

Why do urban communities need parks?
City parks and open space improve our physical and psychological health, strengthen our communities, and make our cities and neighborhoods more attractive places to live and work. Green space in urban areas provides substantial environmental benefits. Trees reduce air pollution and water pollution, they help keep cities cooler, and they are a more effective and less expensive way to manage stormwater runoff than building systems of concrete sewers and drainage ditches. City parks also produce important social and community development benefits. They make inner-city neighborhoods more livable; they offer recreational opportunities for at-risk youth, low-income children, and low-income families; and they provide places in low-income neighborhoods where people can feel a sense of community. Access to public parks and recreational facilities has been strongly linked to reductions in crime and in particular to reduced juvenile delinquency.

What is a green roof?
A green roof is an urban building with plants growing on the roof click here to read about green roofs

What is rooftop gardening?
An urban building with plants growing in containers on a roof. The plants may be vegetables for eating, or the plants may be flowers and ornamental. photos of rooftop gardens rooftop gardening best plants for rooftop gardens

Rooftop gardening: how to set up a rooftop garden Gardening in urban areas: top 10 tips for urban gardens What have other schools done?: classroom projects

Read these articles about urban parks photos of urban parks Central Park: things to see and do in central park list of nyc parks ecosystems in brooklyn bridge park The highline The lowline

Previous lessons: Did you know the aquaponics tank is a garden?? It is a type of aquaculture. Aquaculture= fish farming ==Today you and a partner will share a computer. One of you will spend some time watching aquaponics videos while the other person draws all the parts of the aquaponics tank carefully in a science notebook, and writes an answer to the question: “why is aquaponics a good choice in a city?” Then you will switch== click here for an animated aquaponics video Click here to learn how tilapia grow in an aquaponics tank click here for a quick movie from NOAA click here to learn about aquaculture in Maine Click here for another video about aquaponics

Previous movies: We are learning about the VIG and vertical farming. Write down "Vertical Farming" and watch a video. Then write down why vertical farming is helpful. click here to learn about vertical farming in cities click here to see an animation of a dream for a vertical city click here to see a video about vertical farming

Click a link to learn more: outdoor compost movie Click here to hear about decay and decompose with Sid the Science Kid Click here to learn about compost from Peppa the Pig Click here to learn how little kids compost at school Click here to learn how compost is recycling plants

If you need some help understanding compost, you can click on "Axton's composter paper"

Jackie also wrote information about compost:

Composting is when you throw away your scraps that you ate into a box and it turns into dirt. and worms like it. it is good to compost because it is better for the earth because it reduces the amount of garbage that people throw away. I think everyone should compost as much as they can.

Thank you,

Jackie

We are learning about the VIG and vertical farming. Write down "Vertical Farming" and watch a video. Then write down why vertical farming is helpful. click here to learn about vertical farming in cities click here to see an animation of a dream for a vertical city click here to see a video about vertical farming

=ow to build a vertical herb planter= indoor vertical

We are learning all about plants! 1 -Today listen to the plant songand take notes in your notebook on what plants need to grow. 2-Write down each plant need you hear in the song. 3-Then, look over at the beautiful sugar snap pea plants growing in the vine crop system. Do those plants have everything they need to grow? Give a check mark if you see evidence that the plant gets each of its needs met. Does anything not have a check? We will talk about it as a class.

Extra time? Click here to make a plant grow Read a powerpoint about what plants need to grow:

Today you will use the computers to learn about the names of plant parts, and what they do You may click on any of the links below You must include notes in your notebook and include: leaf stem roots flowers seeds plant part worksheet parts of a plant plant part quiz Watch this interactive lesson on Plant parts and functions

We are studying plants! plant parts song name the plant part Plant Parts learn about each plant part Plant needs plant part match up seeds

click here to play The Great Plant Escape

https://vimeo.com/171229237

We finished our plant unit and now we are learning what happens to plants that die and go into the compost what an animation about outdoor compost click here to see a video of an outdoor compost bin click here for songs to sing about worm bins

gardeners discuss how to make a bin outside

kids make a compost bin outside

Earth Materials Last month we learned about worm composting It's simple. The worms are kept in a bin with shredded paper or other biodegradable bedding. You feed them food waste. They digest the waste and bedding then excrete nutrient-rich castings. After a few months, the castings combined with the well-decomposed bedding, become vermicompost -- one of the richest soil improvements around. It will do wonders for plants, flowers, fruit trees and garden vegetables. || In your notebook write 3 sentences about worms composting. You must explain: 1) how food turns to compost; 2) what castings are; 3) how soil is different than compost If you need help you can also observe the worms bins, or watch these: Click here to see how one boy researched worms Click here to learn about composting from Vermi the worm
 * . || =Composting with worms =

video about the rock cycle and then act out the rock cycle with two partners

Sedimentary rocks:

Click here to learn how igneous rock forms from volcanoes extra time? igneous rock cooling more vocabulary about igneous rock stop motion how an igneous rock forms

rocks and soils interactive Rocks and Soils online game

igneous rock interactive

Information about rocks and rock cycle
igneous rock interactive [|all about rocks] uses of rocks and minerals rocks in the rock cycle types of rocks introduction to rocks igneous rocks

rock cycle video the rock cycle rocks and minerals photos minerals and astronauts rock cycle lab Rocks and Soils online game

We are learning all about plants! Today listen to the plant songand take notes in your notebook on what plants need to grow. Write down each plant need. Then, look over at the beautiful tomato plants growing in the vine crop system. Do those plants have everything they need to grow? Give a check mark if you see evidence that the plant gets each of its needs met. Does anything not have a check? We will talk about it as a class.

Extra time? Click here to make a plant grow Read a powerpoint about what plants need to grow:

Today you will use the computers to learn about the names of plant parts, and what they do You may click on any of the links below You must include notes in your notebook and include: leaf stem roots flowers seeds plant part worksheet parts of a plant plant part quiz Watch this interactive lesson on Plant parts and functions

We are studying plants! name the plant part Plant Parts learn about each plant part Plant needs plant part match up seeds

click here to play The Great Plant Escape

Learn about seed dispersal



Watercress Seed Pods Our watercress plants have grown strong and tall and now have seed pods

Collecting Seeds: Pick seed pods, or the entire stem, when seeds start dropping. Spread them out on a plastic or cotton sheet to dry, preferably in the sun. Thrash dried pods (with or without stem attached) with a stick. Winnow mixture of broken pods and seeds by sifting it slowly through your fingers. While winnowing, hold your hands as high as possible above a container, leaving sufficient space between your fingers and the container so that the breeze (or you blowing) blows away the chaff. Repeat sifting until the seeds are clean. Seed you want to store for future use should be kept in an air tight container