Paper short abstract:

School gardens, playground habitats, classrooms floating on the river: multi-media ethnography of educators cultivating a sense of place. These living spaces blur the boundaries between inside-outside and school-community. Intergenerational narratives situate these growing school spaces.

Paper long abstract:

This multi-media ethnography highlights a set of programs that help urban and suburban schools to cultivate ecologically diverse spaces on their grounds. These living classrooms blur the boundaries between inside-outside and school-community. School gardens not only provide weekly treats for"Salad Day," but they also offer children the sensual pleasures of dirt and warm fruit in an increasingly sanitized school environment. Gardens are the impetus to welcome community elders who teach about gardening and foods representing the children's home cultures. Schoolyard habitat restoration projects bring back heritage plants and involve kids in crafting material artifacts that expand the "nature" of education. Walls of windows in the remodeled school encompass the ancient tree in the schoolyard and let youth bask in the sun year-round. A floating eco-boat takes teachers and schoolchildren directly onto the Three Rivers. Once aboard, they hear intergenerational narratives of deindustrialization and revitalization of their hometown; river water sampling provides hands-on lessons in citizenship and conservation. Strong senses of place and stewardship mold young lives and provide the means to connect and to care as adults. This collaborative project brings together the voices, physical labor, and documentary photographs of youth, teachers, parents, garden coordinators, and university scholars. Schools are actively reshaping their reputations by cultivating a generations of proud students and involved parents. They "plant" their hopes and "harvest" rich rewards, just as each class of kindergarteners plant "their" tulips and wait for the first thaw of spring to reveal new blossoms.