Classroom Cultivation: Exploring Plant Ecology is a project that brings plant science and interactive plant ecology exploration to classrooms and on school grounds. Thanks to your partners we will engage students in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, Wilmington, Delaware, and Kenai Peninsula of Alaska regions, along with the current Washington DC and Maryland regions. Students in each region will work with plants native to their community to collect and analyze data all while learning about plants and their importance, gaining research experience, and storytelling through science. Native plants are an imperative part of local ecosystems and provide food and habitats for surrounding wildlife. Building a connection with plants that are vital to your community through science allows students to see themselves as scientists making a positive impact where they live. The tools gained in this project, such as problem-solving skills, science and social literacy, ethical awareness, and sensitivity to the relationship between humans and the environment, aren’t just limited to the classroom. After the experiment students will have the opportunity to cultivate school gardens, using the plants they have nurtured along with other native plants. Hands-on STEM engagement can help students build stronger science identities, often encouraging more interest in school, and building confidence. These engagements also benefit teachers, increasing their scientific identity and their confidence in their ability to teach genuine research and experiments. Students will get to share their data and stories during the end-of-the-year symposium where they present their findings to their friends, schoolmates, family, and community. Through partnerships with the Kachemak Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Mt Cuba Center, North American Orchid Conservation Center, and Smithsonian Garden we have developed ways for middle school students to make real contributions to SERC science.
The Classroom Cultivation program is based on a previous program, Orchids in Classrooms (OIC). Orchids in Classrooms are scientists and researchers from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) partnering with the North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC), Fraichild tropical Botanical Gardens, and the Million Orchid Project who partner with students and teachers in various regions to study and conserve native orchids. The goal of this research is to determine better protocols to produce viable seedlings for future reintroductions and advancing the long-term sustainability of native orchids. This classroom-driven conservation effort allows levels of production that would otherwise not be achievable by scientists alone, while providing the framework to conduct powerful and relevant scientific research. In the 2019-2020 school year, OIC were able to collaborate with students and teachers in 14 different classrooms around different regions (seven DC public schools, 5 MD classrooms and one science center, and one FL school) to study native orchids.
SERC scientists look at plants’ growth patterns in different habitats and study the abiotic and biotic factors needed to grow and reproduce in the wild with the goal of deciphering what environmental conditions plant and their surrounding symbiotes need to survive. This decade-long research has looked at Mid-Atlantic plants and their interaction with the environments, more recently focusing on how these native plants interact with fellow native plants and symbiotes in their ecosystem. Through partnerships this study will include research on native plant ecosystems in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Minnesota, and Alaska. Through their study, students in each region are aiding in the conservation of native plants while also creating green spaces inside and outside of the classroom. The students are partners alongside SERC scientists, aiming to improve biology and propagation conservation efforts. The students’ work helps to expand data collection and study range and ultimately improve the long-term conservation of native plants.
In order to find the most effective way to propagate native plants, each participating classroom will get seedlings to grow. Students will look at how plants best flourish in various conditions: grow in different environments (i.e., different fertilizer types), relationships between pollinators (which pollinators are most attracted to the plants), microbial symbiotic relationships (how microbes aid or hinder plant growth), and best ways for relocating plants from indoors to outdoors. By undergoing these processes, we will better under the best habits needed for optimum growth of these native plants and ultimately allow scientists to implement better conversation practices. In the 2023-2024 school year, students will focus on how different combinations of soil and microbes impact plant survivorship and growth.
Calopogon tuberosus is found along the eastern coast of North America as far as the northern Caribbean, making it the broadest range of any Calopogon. It has been deemed the grass pink orchid due to its grass-like leaves and the magenta to pink or sometimes white flowers. The pink orchid is an herbaceous perennial that produces up to 25 flowers. Calopogon tuberosus is listed as secure globally by the NatureServe. However, is critically imperiled Maryland, Delaware, and Virginia, and presumed extirpated in Washington DC.
Calopogon tuberosus curtesy of Dennis Wigham
SERC worked with 7 schools and groups in Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, and in Washington DC during Spring 2018.
All data is available upon request. Please contact Alison Cawood at cawooda@si.edu.
We are working with schools and groups in the Maryland/Washington DC metropolitan area including Baltimore City Schools, Prince George’s County, Washington DC, and Anne Arundel County. A well as expanding to the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota region, Wilmington, Delaware region, and Kenai Peninsula of Alaska region.
Inquire about getting your school involved! Contact Classroom Cultivation's Program Coordinator, Shatiyana Dunn, at DunnS@si.edu or 443-482-2240
Check out our amazing partners, who are a major part of this program!
English Version
Spanish Version
Fall 2019 Materials coming soon!
