School garden whets curiosity of children
“Each one, plant one” may serve as an expedient catchphrase during politically-motivated green drives. In most such cases, the follow-up measures, which are more important, are ignored soon after the initial hungama.
Giddalur: “Each one, plant one” may serve as an expedient catchphrase during politically-motivated green drives. In most such cases, the follow-up measures, which are more important, are ignored soon after the initial hungama.
But, if a school determinedly chooses to leave the task of growing plants entirely to students, the results can be amazing. It happened at the Mandal Parishad Upper Primary School at Narava Bayanapalle.
The school has just 58 students; yet, the plants being grown in pots and plastic buckets by highly motivated students, who are totally involved, has transformed the ambience of the school and has improved the attendance of students. The teachers encourage the students to grow at least one flowering plant. The students take care of their plants daily.
With active support from teachers and grateful parents, the students enthusiastically bring buckets and pots to school (no matter if they are broken or have holes) and fill them with soil and enrich it with nutrients. They then plant and tend several varieties of jasmine and marigold, rose, balsam, hibiscus, chrysanthemum, artemisia pollens, table rose, crossandra and other plant varieties.
Thanks to their curiosity and unstinted efforts to grow the plants in the best possible manner, the school has doubled up as a pleasant garden with the scents of fragrant flowers wafting all over.
Lakshmi, a Class VI student, says: “These plants have become our friends and we are spending time with them by watering, cleaning the pots, removing dry leaves etc. We plant a sapling whenever we get a pot or bucket from home. We are happy to play and read amidst the plants and flowers grown by us.”
The headmaster, P Nagarjuna, says that the plants have fostered a sense of responsibility and love for nature among the students. “We are encouraging the children to grow as many plants as they can at home and in the school.
Caring for the plant daily is helping the students learn responsibility towards their family and friends and all this has brought about a lot difference in the attitude of the children. We are happy that we are inculcating good habits in the children along with making them finest students who can compete with students from private schools.”
By Naresh Nandam and PY Khan
