THE EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF AN AQUAPONICS GREENHOUSE

Effective Participatory Education

Diverse learning styles demand the use of multiple teaching methods including, reading, watching, and doing. Having a “hands-on” platform ensures that multiple teaching methodologies can support any student’s education.

A LEAF is an educational facility that provides opportunities for learning to be integrated with core curriculum, STEM and Next Generation Science Standards across all grade levels.

Practical math, chemistry, ecology, nutrition, business, biology, and agriculture can be taught by, for example, integrating mathematics with measuring the growth rate of plants, chemistry with the nitrogen cycle, economic and business principles, and biology and agriculture with fish and plant lifecycles.

There are also education opportunities in the construction and operation of the systems that make a LEAF work: plumbing, electrical, solar, thermal heating/cooling systems, rainwater catchment, construction and systems maintenance.

A major benefit of the LEAF greenhouse education is that it connects people to the food they eat. Many children and adults do not know how or where their food is grown, how it is transported, or the environmental impact of agriculture.

Given the opportunity to see an entire food chain from seed to plate, people are introduced to the wonders of where food comes from and a realization that there are food choices.

People that grow their veggies, eat their veggies!

There are also duties to perform to keep each LEAF greenhouse thriving. Participating in these duties helps develop integrity and a healthy work ethic.

CDC Healthy Places recommendations:

Community gardens are collaborative projects on shared open spaces where participants share in the maintenance and products of the garden, including healthful and affordable fresh fruits and vegetables.

Gardens may offer physical and mental health benefits by providing opportunities to

• Eat healthy fresh fruits and vegetables.
• Engage in physical activity, skill building, and creating green space.
• Beautify vacant lots.
• Revitalize communities in industrial areas.
• Revive and beautify public parks.
• Create green rooftops.
• Decrease violence in some neighborhoods and improve social well-being through strengthening social connections.

Meet common core objectives with sustainable agriculture curriculum

Free Curriculum

A collection of free agriculture and nutrition resources for teachers that supports STEM and Common Core.
Not specifically about aquaponics, but plants, ecosystems, sustainable agriculture, and nutrition are all part of aquaponics.