Durango High School engineering and computer science students listen to SOIL Project Manager Charlie Love describe the problems of temperature moderation in a greenhouse. The students embodied Portrait of a Graduate competencies during the field trip on Feb. 10 at the Grow Dome of SOIL Outdoor Learning Lab – especially Creative Problem-Solver, Agile Thinker, and Empathetic Collaborator.
Riverview Elementary School fifth graders buried micro:bits in garden beds around the Grow Dome to track soil temperature over several days, then used that data to recommend what types of seeds should be planted where.
The Grow Dome is located just east of the Community Garden at SOIL Outdoor Learning Lab, on the Riverview Elementary School campus.
SOIL Project Manager Charlie Love has already hosted many field trips to the Grow Dome for all grades and schools in Durango School District. This week there were two stories on the Grow Dome in The Durango Herald: At the Grow Dome, Durango High Schoolers solve real-world problems; and Durango School District's Soil Lab wraps up second phase of development.
A seedling pokes up from dried leaves in one of the Grow Dome's custom-built plant beds.
"SOIL offers multigenerational education and is a community resource," said Superintendent Dr. Karen Cheser in a Herald story. "Students and children can visit the lab to see how aquaponics and hydroponics work and learn about sustainability from adults growing in the garden. The school district is committed to continuing to fund all of our operations and project manager, and all the things that we need to make it a success."
Charlie Love describes the challenge of an automated system to open and close ventilation shafts in the Grow Dome, with complex variables of changing temperatures, seasonal sunlight, and humidity.
Love said the Grow Dome will accommodate student field trips year-round and allow for new and improved community programs, public events and public access.
“For both students and community members, I’m really excited about opportunities for innovative techniques, technologies, research that wouldn’t happen in a normal garden because of some of the technology we have in there and some of the more innovative equipment and things. I would just say come see it. It’s pretty cool,” he said in the Herald story.
The Grow Dome includes an aquaponic pool, which will be used to raise fish and grow plants simultaneously. The fish waste acts as fertilizer for the plants, and the plants clean the water for the fish, creating a symbiotic relationship between them; essentially turning a pool into a self-sustaining food production system. Community information on SOIL Outdoor Learning Lab
Resources for Durango School District staff
- Here is a link to the SOIL Field Trip Request Form. This resource is available for all district teachers at all grade levels and all subject areas.
- Kindergarten, 1st, and 3rd grade teachers may also to sign up for the SOIL spring field trip program.