By PLT Staff

Students at Barnard Elementary get ready to plant!

You don’t have to be big to make a big difference.  Elementary students, teachers, and parents from Hyde-Addison and Barnard Elementary Schools in Washington, D.C. teamed up with community volunteers this fall to improve and beautify their schoolyards. Working with national Project Learning Tree staff, the students built raised garden beds and planted perennials, herbs, and vegetables. They also removed weeds and invasive plants from school grounds.  Local landscaper Jenny Reed and Master Chef Mark Haskell helped teach students the basics of planting a garden and the importance of proper nutrition.

These GreenWorks! environmental service-learning projects were co-sponsored by Project Learning Tree, the national environmental education program of the American Forest Foundation, and HSBC Bank, one of the world’s largest financial organizations.  In May, HSBC added a retail branch in the heart of historic Georgetown in Washington, D.C. and the bank extended their partnership with Project Learning Tree as a way to connect their employees with their local community in a meaningful way.

Hyde-Addison Elementary and Barnard Elementary were selected as the second and third Washington, D.C. public schools to receive GreenWorks! funding made possible by HSBC’s and PLT’s ‘Greening the Capital City: One Schoolyard at a Time’ program.  The first school to receive HSBC GreenWorks! support was Washington, D.C.’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School in 2008. 

 “Thank you for the wonderful opportunity for us to get involved at Hyde Elementary,” wrote HSBC’s Bojan Savanovic, Compliance Officer, Government & Institutional Banking after volunteering at one of the community service days.  “As HSBC takes root in the Washington area, the service event at Hyde Elementary School was an enriching opportunity for our team to get involved in the community and help younger generations understand the benefits of conservation through fun activities. It reinforces our strong commitment to the local community and encourages us to think globally and act locally.”

In preparation for the community volunteer days, students surveyed the environmental needs of their area and designed action projects that enabled members of all ages to work together to enhance their surroundings and share in the rewards of an improved environment.   

Throughout this year, the schools’ teachers are receiving ongoing Project Learning Tree professional development in environmental education to explore the many ways to connect students to nature, while also helping them meet D.C. Public Schools learning standards.  Studies have shown that environmental education improves student performance, promotes higher order thinking skills, and raises academic test scores.

Netosh Jones, a third-grade teacher at Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School, says PLT has become a partner in her students’ education.  She depends on PLT activities to engage her kids in lots of hands-on environmental learning that the kids really like, including the community garden installation.  She particularly likes that the activities are directly tied to the established learning standards.

The first planting day at Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School took place in June 2008.  In May 2009, PLT organized another service day to further assist students and faculty with their GreenWorks! service learning environmental action grant supported by HSBC. That school site was further improved by adding a new butterfly garden and additional plantings to existing gardens.

“Teachers and community members helped dig and move soil, plant seeds and butterfly-attracting plants, and trim trees, all while mentoring and sharing their experiences with elementary students,” said PLT’s Jackie Stallard.  “It was a great day, and the project continues to be maintained and used by the students as part of their academic program.”

At least two students from each grade level, pre-kindergarden through 5th grade, were chosen to participate in this school-wide event.  With the help of PLT National Staff, a local landscape architect, and the elementary school Principal, students learned about proper planting techniques, the lifecycle of a butterfly, and how plants grow.  Two PLT workshops helped teachers learn how to tie their new schoolyard gardens to required academic standards.

Dr. Valoria Baylor, Principal of Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School, said the new garden helps beautify the school and connect it to the community.  "Our partnership with PLT has helped them [the students] see they are part of the Anacostia community and integral to the city."

Thanks to the grant from HSBC Bank, PLT will continue working with Washington, D.C. schools to help “green” their schoolyards and lesson plans.