A Growing Dome® has proven itself to be the ultimate “ecology lab” at many schools. Students harvest herbs, vegetables and medicinal plants in their specimen gardens. They experiment with solar power, seasonal cycles, techniques for organic gardening, fish production and seed saving. Many schools are not in session during the main growing season, so the Growing Dome also enables a year-round learning environment. And perhaps more importantly, these living classrooms instill a greater sense of respect for our environment and earth amongst our future generations.
“Every school should have a Growing Dome garden. It is relevant to every department and there is a constant waiting list for my classes in there. Even the troubled kids seem to settle down in the Growing Dome. They love to get their hands in the dirt and are learning all about sustainability and living systems as well as geometry and energy efficiency.” – Tony Rackham, School Teacher, Pagosa Springs, CO
In addition, as more schools focus on healthier lunches and health education, our Growing Dome greenhouses can be a central focus for fresh organic salad bars and learning about organic gardening.
Growing Spaces® is more than a product…it is a way of living a green, independent and responsible lifestyle. To that end, we are involved in educating children, adults, communities and organizations on green practices, organic farming techniques, shifting awareness/embracing change, sustainable lifestyles and modeling a new business culture.
“It awakens their minds to different possibilities and teaches them to make healthy choices.” – Kelle Bruno, Pagosa Peak Open School
From holding gardening classes, to speaking at a variety of conferences, producing articles and videos, as well as partnering with other organizations who promote healthy living, Growing Spaces is focused on educating and empowering individuals one step at a time.
“Through hand-on activities, students can better understand how STEM can be applied to everyday life and help create real change in their communities…The Schoolyard STEM Lab is a great tool that we can use to accelerate student learning by introducing all of our students to the scientific inquiry process within the context of the natural environment.” – Lauren Restuccia, senior manager of corporate citizenship at Samsung
Schools on Native American Reservations in the US and Canada benefit from the Growing Dome to improve education, vocational skills and to alleviate food insecurity issues. The Growing Dome acts as a STEM lab for many students, provides vocational opportunities in both construction and culinary arts, but also provides a local source for fresh organic food for the community year-round!
“The Schoolyard STEM Lab provides an opportunity for students to harvest their own herbs and vegetables which can be shared with the community and used by the school to prepare more nutritious meals” – Jennifer Choate, Nizhoni Elementary, Navajo Nation
“I wanted the children to be able to grow more during the school year because the main growing season is outside of the school year. I went to visit one at another school, and I was just so impressed by so many things about it. We’ve now been able to provide that opportunity for 100s of children to learn to grow their own food and live a more sustainable way of life.” – Micah Parkin, Executive Director of 350.org Colorado
Depending on the size of the school and the application, many of our Growing Dome greenhouses will work well in a learning environment. Our larger greenhouses tend to be the most popular with schools to allow for more teaching space, enough bed space for classes and projects and for year-round growing. There are also many gardening grants available for school greenhouse projects.