Gardens for Learning
RPCS has expanded its use of outdoor classrooms by developing gardens for learning. Each garden is developed for a different purpose. In the first, second and third grades students plant vegetable gardens. The harvest is cooked and eaten by the students who planted it whenever possible. Some lower school students help in our herb garden during recess or after school. The herbs are used for various arts and crafts projects as well as for enhancing recipes prepared by students. Fifth grade and middle school students help plant and maintain our large perennial butterfly garden which is planted with native perennials that serve as nectar and larval plants for Monarchs and other butterflies as well as providing nectar for pollinator species such as bees and hummingbirds. Older students work as Backwoods Stewards helping to plant trees, bushes and herbaceous plants to enhance and conserve the woodland. They also work to remove invasive species in the Backwoods.
