Columbia River to Farmer's Market
Jefferson Elementary School fifth grade students are treated to an outdoor lesson combining math, agriculture and community each September. The students leave the school and walk along the Columbia River arriving at the Richland Farmer's Market.
"Most of our students live only one to two miles away and are not aware that the Farmer's Market is available to them and their families throughout the summer," explains teacher Wendy Holsten. "It's great for them to see and taste the different kinds of fresh produce that is grown by local farmers. We walk along the beautiful Columbia River trail to get there and talk about the environment which ties in with our ecosystems science units that we will be doing later in the year.
"Also, we study adding and subtracting decimals. What better way to teach decimals than with real money? We have the students complete a worksheet that has them finding certain vendors at the Farmer's Market and figuring out problems related to the produce prices.
"I came up with the field trip idea when I came back from teaching English at an International Summer School in Austria. In Austria, we walked everywhere! This inspired me to find a place to walk to that was educational, free (to the students and the school district), and close enough to walk to. That's when I saw the Farmer's Market sign and decided the market would be an excellent place to go!"
Farmer's Market 2009 Photo Gallery - click on photos to enlarge
"Most of our students live only one to two miles away and are not aware that the Farmer's Market is available to them and their families throughout the summer," explains teacher Wendy Holsten. "It's great for them to see and taste the different kinds of fresh produce that is grown by local farmers. We walk along the beautiful Columbia River trail to get there and talk about the environment which ties in with our ecosystems science units that we will be doing later in the year.
"Also, we study adding and subtracting decimals. What better way to teach decimals than with real money? We have the students complete a worksheet that has them finding certain vendors at the Farmer's Market and figuring out problems related to the produce prices.
"I came up with the field trip idea when I came back from teaching English at an International Summer School in Austria. In Austria, we walked everywhere! This inspired me to find a place to walk to that was educational, free (to the students and the school district), and close enough to walk to. That's when I saw the Farmer's Market sign and decided the market would be an excellent place to go!"
Farmer's Market 2009 Photo Gallery - click on photos to enlarge
