The HDS B.R.I.D.G.E.S. Broward students worked on planting a flower garden at their high school over the past three weeks to enhance the garden space. The students participated in several activities to help them achieve their goals. First, they went to the garden and cleared the area of weeds while discussing what kinds of plants and flowers they wanted to plant and how much water and sunlight they would require.
The following class period, the students went on a Community-Based Instruction (CBI) field trip to Home Depot, where they used their Gift Cards to buy plants and soil. Once they entered the store’s garden section, the students were split into pairs. Their challenge was to find one large plant for $19.98 and two medium plants for $13.96 total, with a $40 budget. Two groups were given $60 in gift cards to purchase a 50-quart bag of potting soil. Each group did an excellent job, working together to find the plants and heading to the cashier to purchase their items.
Once everyone completed their tasks of finding all the items they needed to purchase, they headed back to school for lunch. The students were excited to get to the garden and begin planting flowers and plants. During the next class, the students enjoyed spending the morning out in the garden working together.
Several students were responsible for putting the soil in place and spreading it around the flower garden. Another group of students planted what they had purchased at Home Depot. The final group made sure to water the plants. The last thing done was to place their special flag in the front of the garden, which read: “If you plant, they will come to socialize.” This message had a lot of meaning for these students since their program focuses on peer interaction, and socialization activities.
All the students were proud of what they accomplished together! Now they can all enjoy the beautiful flower garden they all worked hard to create for themselves and the other students, teachers, and families at their school!
