An Educational Visit to the San Vicente Botanical Garden
The garden is an outdoor classroom;
nature is the greatest teacher.
San Vicente Ilocos Sur Philippines - Heritage Zone of the North (RA 11645)
Dr Abe V Rotor
Croton (Codiaum variegatum) glows with the setting sun
makes a perfect background of youth and beauty.
"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." —Lao Tzu
Waterfalls roaring, hissing, cold and refreshing - before a wall mural.
"If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere."
— Laura Ingalls Wilder
The sun is brightest before sundown. These models save
the day among trees and icons in the garden.
"There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature -
the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter."
—Rachel Carson
Catch the fish with the camera, even only their impressions in ripples.
"If I had a flower for every time I thought of you…
I could walk through my garden forever."
– Alfred Lord Tennyson
Sampaguita (Jasminium sambac); caballero (Caesalpinna pulcherrima)
"Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose"- Gertrude Stein,
when asked what is a rose (1913 poem "Sacred Emily").
The adage evolved into several variations. The rose could
mean anything compared to its beauty found in nature, and
that it may reside in the human spirit.
"We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice
because thorn bushes have roses." - Abraham Lincoln
"Earth laughs in flowers." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
"The best place to find God is in a garden.
You can dig for him there."
–George Bernard Shaw
The garden is an outdoor classroom, nature the great teacher;
life the subject, the universe boundless and free. - A V Rotor
Arboretum simulates the tropical rainforest in storeys or layers,
consisting of ground plants, bushes, shrubs, lianas, canopy trees
(main crown) and emergents (tallest trees). Several trees are three
to four generations old, earning the name heritage trees. ~
"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need."
– Cicero
Core Uses For Garden-Based Learning In Basic Education
Acknowledgement with thanks to Livingston Education Foundation,
Outdoor Classroom Initiations, Internet
“We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.” ~Franklin Delano Roosevelt
- To support core academic training, particularly in science and math – real world hands on experiences
- Enrichment of core curriculum in language arts through introduction of new learning landscapes
- To support standards based education in countries with national or regional education standards
Personal Development (Mental & Physical)
- To add a sense of excitement, adventure, emotional impact and aesthetic appreciation to learning
- To improve nutrition, diet and health
- To teach the art and science of cooking with fresh products from the garden or local farms
- To re-establish the celebratory nature of a shared meal
- Provide ‘real life’ experiences that foster team decision-making to a collective goal
- Provide respite from academic and social stress
Social & Moral Development
- To teach sustainable development
- To teach ecological literacy and/or environmental education
- To teach the joy and dignity of work and a sense of community
- To teach respect for public and private property
Vocational and/or Subsistence Skills
- To teach basic skills and vocational competencies
- To produce food and other commodities for subsistence consumption and trade
Life Skills
- To teach about food and fiber production
- To engage children in community service and environmental care
- To involve students in lessons of leadership and decision making
Apo Baket - keeper of traditional values, and Basang - nanny of orphaned children,
are icons enshrined in the San Vicente Botanical Garden
Core uses for garden-based learning beyond basic education
- Community Development
- Gardens often serve as a focal point for community dialogue, capacity building, and partnerships
- Gardens often organize individuals for action – for water delivery, cooperatives, and transportation
- Sustainable Development
- Gardens are an appropriate arena to introduce children to the interconnections that link nature to economic systems and society
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden-based_learning ~
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