Rainbow Wins Green Ribbon Schools Award
Rainbow Community School has won a prestigious award: it has become a Green Ribbon School.
Why is this so important?
From the Green Ribbon Schools website,
The Green Ribbon Schools program is where health, education, STEM skills, technology and being green combine to propel entire schools towards a happier, healthier and smarter future. It is where students get more involved in school activities, not less, and where teachers and students become the true leaders of their schools and communities.
The community here at Rainbow is committed to a happier, healthier and smarter future for our students. We embarked on many projects in the last year to create a school that embraces sustainability. Our students are heavily involved in this process.
Take a look at some of the projects that helped us to gain such special recognition:
Building a New Playground
We built a playground that incorporated recycled materials wherever possible: from “dead” locust logs to urbanite (recycled concrete), the children can play in an area that was designed with nature in mind.
Our “Gnome Village” was built with recycled materials wherever possible.
Creating Gardens
Our fourth graders helped to build raised garden beds to learn about growing vegetables sustainably and organically. They used the scientific method to investigate vegetable growth, nutrition and predicted various results. They also incorporated their math skills by calculating the distance between vegetables and growth patterns. They also experienced the “farm to table” idea by eating the vegetables they grew.
4th graders learn about growing vegetables organically.
Create an Outdoor Classroom
In order to create what is dubbed the “Council Circle,” community members and builders found dead tree stumps and reclaimed them to become the “chairs” for our outdoor classroom.
The Council Circle fosters a community learning environment. Designed in a way that echoes the customs of Native American Indian tribes, this classroom promotes peace and appreciation for nature, as well as helps create an atmosphere of mutual respect and appreciation for not only the outdoors, but for fellow students and teachers. At Rainbow Community School, everyone has an equal voice.
Our outdoor classroom, aka “The Council Circle.”
Investigating Dinosaurs
Our second and third graders from last year did a paleontology dig to investigate dinosaurs. The dinosaur unit centered around investigation, writing, documenting, and seeing the world through a paleontologist’s eyes.
2nd and 3rd graders doing a dinosaur dig.
Build a Terrarium
Our first graders learned how to build terrariums. In the process, they learned about soil composition and how to create habitats for organisms such as ferns and moss. By the end of the unit, our students understood how important it was to balance water, air, and proper soil nutrition to create a suitable environment for plant life.
It’s fun to build a terrarium! First graders learned so much!
The Fourth grade centering went like this today;
