Baby It's Cooooooold Outside!

the greenhouse school
patricia jennings-welch, executive director
145 loring avenue
salem, massachusetts 01970
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Baby It's Cooooooold Outside!

It may be one of the coldest March weeks on record, but students at The Greenhouse School are getting an early start on Spring. "Our summer gardens are one of our best features," says Director Dan Welch. "It's like conjuring the seasons--the earlier we start, the more excited we are."

Kids maintain several flower and vegetable gardens at the Salem, Mass. alternative independent school. Every year, they place entries in the Topsfield Fair, and always seem to take home their share of prizes. Last Fall the children won the Henry J. Ranta Medal for Outstanding Educational Exhibit.

As the region's only truly year-round school--the program only shuts down completely for major holidays--the small school is uniquely positioned to plan, plant, tend and harvest with the seasons. Err, well, in addition to the fact that it is, in fact, located in an actual greenhouse.

"I love summers at school," says Herby Charmant, a seventh grader at GHS. "I love going in the pool or the sprinkler, and taking walks to the park and the marsh." Schoolmate Hector Cotto agrees, adding the school's overnight camping trips to the list.

There is, of course, plenty of work, but the kids don't seem to mind so much. As fifth grader Lydia King says, "It's not everyday stuff-- it's kind of out of the ordinary."

Of course, everyone jumps to the end of the process. "It's fun to pick the things after they grow," says King. Classmate Marcus McKenzie jumps in: "Yeah! And you can eat it fresh, right out of the garden!" This triggers another memory for King, when, she says, "we had the raspberries and we could just pick them off and eat them."

Welch notes that no one mentions weeding. "Everyone hates weeding, but hey--it's part of the process." For Assistant Director Julia Nambalirwa-Lugudde, Summer can't come soon enough. "I can't wait for Summer," she adds. "Long days outside, with the flowers and the grass- -it's like heaven." She also loves what she calls her 'outdoor classroom.' Classes are conducted outside for a large chunk of the day, weather permitting. "It's just so relaxed and beautiful; this year I'm really looking forward to it."

Relaxed enough, that is, to convince kids that the extra learning is actually fun. But even the kids get the point about the Summer program. "It keeps our brains in shape so we don't forget everything when Fall comes," Charmant adds with a smile. And with the memory of a miserable February fresh behind them, it can't come soon enough.

CONTACT: Dan Welch EMAIL: wpdanny@netzero.com WEBSITE: http://www.greenhouseschool.org

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