{"id":10871,"date":"2018-12-03T15:09:56","date_gmt":"2018-12-03T20:09:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/currents\/?p=10871"},"modified":"2024-05-02T15:18:49","modified_gmt":"2024-05-02T19:18:49","slug":"young-minds-enjoy-new-green-infrastructure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/currents\/2018\/12\/young-minds-enjoy-new-green-infrastructure\/","title":{"rendered":"Young Minds Enjoy New Green Infrastructure"},"content":{"rendered":"
Above: Young children play with sand in a watershed model at the Spring STEM Fair at Kingswood Elementary School.<\/em><\/p>\n
BY CHRISTY PERRIN<\/strong><\/p>\n
On a warm autumn morning in 2017, four young boys excitedly reach for irises in small pots and a chance to push their hands into soft dirt. One of the fourth graders laments his buddy is late and will miss out on planting the rain garden. \u201cThis is so much better than sitting in class!\u201d he exclaims.<\/p>\n
As these young Kingswood Elementary School students are learning, this new rain garden on the school grounds does more than soak up rain water, reduce pollutants and improve the health of downstream Black Creek. It provides plants for our butterfly and bee pollinator friends, birds and amphibians. It provides a touchable, smell-able and dynamic outdoor learning environment for growing minds. Also, as we unexpectedly learned through conversations with teachers, tranquil planted spaces like these provide brief moments of respite for stressed teachers and other school staff.<\/p>\n