
Learning Through Service East End Elementary Easley, SC Jen McGee Hort. 461
Project Statement • Design an interactive learning environment for the students and faculty at East End Elementary that will help to beautify the school. • Use the principles of Service Learning to work with the students and faculty of East End Elementary
Main Goals • Provide a beautiful landscape for East End Elementary through Service Learning • Provide a “Learning Landscape” for the children • Learn more about how to design usable gardens
Service Learning Outdoor Classrooms Courtyards Carolina Fence Gardens Sustainable Environments and Energy Efficiency Getting Started: Research
Goals of Service Learning • Allow life experiences to inform one’s learning • Apply academic knowledge in real life settings • Recognize one’s responsibility to their local community and larger society
Benefits of Hands-on Learning At least 90% of working outdoors is hands-on experience. The retention rate for students is 75% for learning by doing.
Outdoor Classrooms • Need to be adaptable • Foster creativity • Are areas of group/cooperative learning • Feature hands-on learning
Courtyard Research • Be able to define space and encourage movement • Design with a view to a larger open space • Seat people so their backs are protected • Allow for areas of both conversation and privacy
Carolina Fence Gardens • Use plants that are readily available in local nurseries or are native • Use plants to attract the native wildlife of South Carolina • Is usually split-rail because this is what farmers used in SC to fence in their livestock in the 1800’s
Sustainable Environments • Way to maintain environment without reducing available resources • Low Maintenance • Conserve Water • Energy Efficient • Create a wildlife habitat
Site Analysis • A site analysis usually includes the following: • Base Map: utilities, building shape/size, sun and wind directions • Topography and Circulation: drainage, pedestrian and vehicular pathways, surrounding land use, views, soil analysis • User Needs: what the clients needs or wants • Existing Plants: condition and size of plants on site • Exterior Building Analysis: elevations of building
East End Base Map This map shows the school and its surroundings as it now looks
Topography and Circulation • Vehicular Traffic is heavy on surrounding streets around 8am and 3pm; Pedestrian traffic is around the perimeter of the school and in the playground area • Views into and out of the school are poor • Topography is mostly flat with few areas where water may collect
User Needs • Butterfly and bird gardens • Interactive outdoor classrooms • Carolina Fence Garden • Bog Garden • Low cost
Existing Plant Material • East End has relatively little existing plant material on site • Most plants are in fair to good condition except for those trees in the parking lot being killed from root compaction
Exterior Building Analysis • The building is a 1950’s style school design • The materials are mainly brick, concrete and steel • This analysis shows the location of all windows, doors, lights, and spigots.
The Designs • Students chose where they would like to design on the site • The areas were the courtyards, the entrance, and the playground. • Each design is sustainable and provides ways for the children to learn about nature and their surroundings
Courtyard Designs • This courtyard design encourages the children to connect with their surroundings by placing pathways through all the plants, and including an interactive bog garden • The plants will be labeled so the children can learn the plant names
Courtyard Designs • This design uses a stone pathway, custom built benches, and winding paths to allow the students to experience the area in a new and different way. • The area is partially enclosed, so children can focus on learning without distractions
Entrance Design • This student designed the entrance to be more warm and inviting • He did this by using “soft” plant material, curvilinear lines, and arbors covering the entryways • He also used a Carolina Fence Garden so the children could learn about native plants
Playground Design • This design focuses on using native plants as well as plants that attract the native wildlife to help the children learn about the plants and animals in the Southeast • The design includes two bird and butterfly gardens and a Carolina Fence Garden
The Final Product… • We hope to work with the students and faculty at East End to implement the projects on the school grounds • Through this service learning project, we have been able to help East End Elementary work toward becoming as beautiful on the outside as it is on the inside