Soil – Page 4 – Island Grown Schools

Curriculum Toolkit
Over the years, we have honed in on priority curricular units for every grade level, preschool through 12th grade, that build on each other and provide a meaningful food education for the students we work with.
This Toolkit is the compilation of these units, along with their related teaching standards and sequence. We are constantly adding to this site, so please check in again soon for updates.

We designed this curriculum framework to help our students grasp the following key concepts by the time they graduate from High School:

Feel confident in making healthy food choices

Appreciate the farming profession

Know that everyone can grow food

Understand the connection between healthy soil, healthy plants and healthy people

Recognize a regenerative, local food system is inclusive and promotes a healthy ecosystem.

Compost Game

OBJECTIVE Students roll dice to collect cards with different ingredients for compost. This game is an introduction to the term “decompose”, “compost”, and “decomposer”. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS What are decomposers?What do they do?What are the ingredients in compost? MATERIALS NEEDED Compost game cardsDice PROCEDURE Before the lessons print and cut out the compost game cards. On […]

Grade levels Prek-2

Core curriculum subjects Science

Island Grown Schools topics Soil

Cover Crop in the Garden

OBJECTIVE Students understand the role of plant matter and microorganisms in building healthy soil. Students will be able to plant a cover crop ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS How can we build soil? MATERIALS NEEDED PROCEDURE This lesson could be done in early spring or in the fall. Introduction: Tell your students they are now in charge of […]

Grade levels 6-8, 9-12

Core curriculum subjects Science

Island Grown Schools topics Soil

Build a Landfill

OBJECTIVE Students will understand the difference between aerobic and anaerobic Students will compare the environmental impacts of landfills versus composting ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS Why should we compost food waste instead of throwingit away? MATERIALS NEEDED One 5-gal bucket with a lid, or 10-12 plastic containers(Tupperware, large soda bottles, etc.) with tight lids.Soil, food scraps, whiteboard or […]

Grade levels 3-5

Core curriculum subjects Science

Island Grown Schools topics Food systems, Soil

Curriculum Toolkit

Compost Game

Cover Crop in the Garden

Build a Landfill