The outdoor classroom – and edible gardens – at Community Park Elementary School took a giant leap forward recently, with the expansion of the fenced area, courtesy of Judy Wilson, Princeton Regional Schools superintendent.
Now, the picnic tables are beneath the shade of a tree and there is grassy area for doing cartwheels or stretching a beach towel out for looking up at the sky. And the gardens can expand as desired.
Congressman Rush Holt's visit to Community Park Elementary School was a delicious way to celebrate the passage of the child nutrition reauthorization bill and Mr. Holt's farm to school funding within that legislation.
With that modest beginning, our lawmakers have begun to reconnect our nation's children to the land, the farmers, chefs, the local economy – and to their own palates. Now, it's up to teachers, administrators, parents and community members across the country to apply for those funds and build their own programs that teach academic subjects, critical thinking skills, and a vocabulary of flavor beyond "awesome," "really good" and "nasty."
After children in Spanish class drew pictures of corn seedlings growing in the raised beds at Community Park Elementary School, their teacher, Adam Blejwas, revealed to them the surprise of the first garlic harvest of the season.