The week of Earth Day, 22 April, began a series of three work and education events for all O‘Keeffe Middle School seventh grade science students. Some students mulched around plantings, some students picked up trash, some students watered, while some students planted native perennials. Everyone, absolutely everyone PULLED GARLIC MUSTARD. At the end there were a grand total of 66-30 gallon trash bags full of garlic mustard that will not set seed this year!
For some students, it was the first time they had been to Tenney Park. For others it was a familiar place. Many wondered why they had to do the work. Wasn’t that someone else’s job? The experience of working outdoors offered a glimpse of how citizens and city government work together for their common good. Moreover, it provided an opportunity for the teachers to demonstrate a lesson in civics—peoples’ duties as citizens.
The events came about through a partnership between the staff at O’Keeffe and the Friends of Yahara River Parkway (FYRP). Both groups recognize the valuable teaching resource right outside the school door. No other school in Madison has quite the unique setting as O’Keeffe. Here it is in the heart of the near east side of an urban area. Step outside and there is a river that connects two lakes. It is perfect for teaching many different aspects of environmental education—from earth science to interactions between urban and “wild” life and cultural aspects of how people live.
All student groups worked in Tenney Woods. Where? Tenney Woods—it is on the same side of the river as Camelot and Yahara Landing complexes. In fact, it backs up to their properties. It is on the northeast side of the river between Johnson Street and the pontoon boat landing. Each group consisted of about 45 students with 2 teachers. They arrived at the park at about 11 am, worked for about and hour, had a lunch break and then worked another hour after lunch before returning to school at about 2 pm.
The first group of students worked on Friday 25 April. The teachers were Suzanne Folberg and Linda Hansen. The second group came on Friday 2 May with Tony Darin and Tom Blau. The last group worked on Friday 9 May. Their teachers were Mary Joe and Karen Spilde. They also had a valuable contingent of parent volunteers.
Honorable mention goes out to Bonnie Moschkau, learning coordinator at O’Keeffe for her consistent rapport with FYRP volunteer Cheryl Redman. Pat Delmore, O’Keeffe principal for supporting outdoor education in the neighborhood. Ed Jepson, FYRP volunteer, for sharing time and knowledge with the students.
-Cheryl Redman
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