The STH Living Lab is open for business!

In November 2014, the Natick Education Foundation awarded the Ben-Hem Seed to Harvest committee with a $4,000 grant to build a living lab in one of our school's courtyards.  The greenhouse and elevated raised beds were ordered right away and arrived at the start of spring 2015.  The raised beds were in place before the end of the school year thanks to the help of parents and students.  Although the manufacturer claimed it could be put together in two days, the greenhouse wound up taking a lot longer to assemble.  But with the hard work and persistence of our parent volunteers, the roof was raised and the structure was in place before the 2015-2016 school year began.

From the beginning, the intent of the Living Lab was to create an outdoor space that could be used by teachers to hold classes, do experiments, and get messy.  This week, we began getting students in the space to do just that.  The Seed to Harvest committee is sponsoring several fall classes and activities for Ben-Hem classrooms.  On Friday, September 18, 2015, we had four different classrooms in the Living Lab learning about carrots, worms and lettuce.  In the next week we will have 15 more classes out there participating in outdoor activities focused on healthy eating, gardening, science and fun.

If you would like to get involved in any of these activities, please contact seedtoharvest@benhempto.org.

The Grand Opening of the STH Living Lab will be October 6, 2015 at the first PTO meeting of the year starting at 7:00 pm.  Parents, teachers and administrators are invited to experience the space firsthand, grab a refreshment and mingle with others in our community.