From the Ground Up: Making Gardening Part of Every Student’s Education by Yamil

From the Ground Up: Making Gardening Part of Every Student’s Education by Yamil - June 2025 Scholarship Essay

Sometimes, we think of school as a place that just prepares us for tests, finals, and college applications, but it should also prepare us for life. Right now, we’re all required to take things like algebra and history, which are important, but not everyone learns skills that help outside of school walls. One of those missing skills is gardening. Gardening is often seen as a hobby or maybe something your grandparents do, but it’s way more than that. Making gardening a required class could teach us real life skills, help the environment, and even improve our school lunches. While some people might think that gardening isn’t academic enough, the truth is that it connects science, health, and responsibility all in one. If we want our education to prepare us for life, gardening shouldn’t just be an elective, it should be for everyone.

One of the main reasons gardening should be required is because it teaches environmental responsibility. We all hear about climate change and pollution, but sometimes those problems feel too big or too far away to fix. Gardening is a way to take action right here, right now. When students grow plants, they learn about the water cycle, soil health, composting, and how pollination works. It’s basically science class in real life, but instead of just reading about ecosystems, you’re helping to make one. Plus, students would learn how to grow native plants that support local pollinators like bees and butterflies, which are essential for keeping nature balanced. By learning these things hands-on, we’re not just memorizing information for a quiz, we’re becoming caretakers of the planet. That’s not just good for the environment; it’s good for shaping responsible people, which is what school is supposed to be about.

Another major benefit of gardening is that it gives students better control over their health. Right now, a lot of students don’t know where their food comes from beyond the school cafeteria. By growing vegetables and herbs, students learn that healthy food isn’t just something you buy in a store, it’s something you can make. Imagine if our school lunches used vegetables grown by students, making the meals fresher, cheaper, and healthier. This is called a farm-to-table system, and it’s not just something that fancy restaurants do. Schools across the country have started doing this with their gardening programs, and the result is that kids are more likely to eat vegetables because they feel proud of what they grew. Plus, gardening is physical activity, which can help with fitness and mental health. In a world where teenage stress is rising, spending time outside planting and harvesting could be just as important as studying for finals.

Of course, some people might argue that gardening shouldn’t be required because it doesn’t seem academic, or that students should focus on traditional subjects that help them get into college. But actually, gardening is academic. It combines biology, chemistry, math (think measuring plots and calculating growth rates), and even literature if students write reflections or garden journals. Colleges don’t just want students who know how to take tests, they want problem solvers, leaders, and people who care about their community. Gardening shows all of that, and schools that have gardening programs often use them to teach STEM subjects in more exciting, hands-on ways. So instead of being a distraction from learning, gardening is learning.

If our school really wants to prepare students for the future, we should be thinking beyond textbooks and grades. By making gardening a required class, we could create a farm-to-table system that makes our lunches healthier, our science classes more engaging, and our students more connected to the environment. It’s one of those rare activities that’s good for people and good for the planet. And if we can grow our own food here at school, just imagine what we could grow out in the real world after we graduate.