At Whole Kids, we believe gardens that are rooted in the community and supported in many different ways are the most successful. So, our Garden Grant applicants are required to partner with an organization or business from the community that will help to bring long-term sustainability to their initiative. Piccolo School of Excellence exemplifies how a steady community partner can help a school garden flourish and make an impact beyond the schoolyard. Their community partner Gardeneers drives the school’s gardening program and led students as they transformed the garden into a space to relax, learn, and explore.
The nonprofit Gardeneers works with Chicago’s South- and Westside schools and communities to contribute positively to the larger food system by supporting school gardens and youth farm programs that build kids’ knowledge, skills, and habits so they can become leaders who care for themselves, their environment, and their communities. The organization’s customized school garden programs transform schoolyards like the one at Piccolo.
Featuring both vibrant play and learning places, Piccolo’s schoolyard reflects the needs and priorities of the surrounding West Humboldt Park neighborhood. Many of the plants found in Piccolo’s schoolyard are prairie plants native to Illinois, pollinator friendly, and have deep roots made to withstand the fluctuating climate and soil types.
The garden’s perennial section features herbs such as sage and dill, as well as flowers like coneflower and borage. There is also a strawberry patch and raspberry bush that return year after year. In addition to perennials, the students planted other crops such as tomatoes, beans, collards, carrots, radishes, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, beets, spinach, and lettuce.
The garden educators from Gardeneers have supported Piccolo for several years and work closely with Ms. Jackson, a 5th/6th grade science teacher. An enthusiastic advocate for STEM learning, she is deeply involved with the garden and also educates and encourages the staff to get their classes involved with Gardeneers’ programs.
2nd through 7th grade classes use the garden each week and 8th graders came out twice a week for lessons. This learning garden is built on three pillars: nutrition, community, and nature, which spans a wide range of lessons from science and health to social and emotional learning.
For example, Gardeneers had students walk around and explore the garden during an ecosystem web lesson, so that they could observe the garden’s ecosystem firsthand. These learnings were connected to a team building lesson to highlight why it’s important to work together in the garden. For 2nd graders, this was also taught in tandem with a lesson on pollinators as plant helpers.
Whenever possible, Gardeneers encourages the students to taste foods in the garden. They also integrate cooking demos into the curriculum, which provided opportunities for students to try new dishes. These recipes are then usually printed and shared with students and teachers.
There is also a farm stand where students, their families, and neighbors can get fresh, free produce to take home. The surplus is then donated to The Love Fridge, a community-run, free-food fridges across Chicago that provide accessible, nutritious food every hour of every day.
In addition to the Gardeneers’ lessons and an after-school garden club, many students hang out in the garden during their outside free time.
Piccolo secured their first Whole Kids Garden Grant in 2021 and added a new compost bin and benches to the garden, which the students painted. The school was awarded a second Garden Grant in 2024.
