Age
16
Country of Residence
Nigeria
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
The idea for STEAM Garden started when we noticed that students learn many things in science class but do not always get the chance to practise them. We wanted to find a way to make learning more practical and interesting. We realised that a school garden could be more than just a place to grow vegetables. It could become a place where students learn science by doing real things. This gave us the idea for STEAM Garden. Students can plant crops, study soil, observe how plants grow, measure results and learn how to use water and other resources wisely. They can also look at problems in their environment and think of ways to solve them. The idea became exciting because students would not just listen to a teacher or read a textbook. They would be able to try things, make mistakes, learn from them and create solutions themselves. We believe that young people should have the chance to use what they learn in school to solve problems around them.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
We will encourage others to join by showing them what we are doing instead of only talking about it. Students can show their classmates how the garden works and share what they have learned. We can also organise school demonstrations, presentations and exhibitions. We will use pictures and short videos to show our activities and results. Students can also share their experiences with their families and communities. As the project grows, we want to work with other schools, teachers, farmers and environmental groups. We want other young people to see that they can also look at problems around them, ask questions and create solutions.
How many people are on your team?
22
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
STEAM Garden is still at the pilot stage, so we are starting small and learning from our activities. Our goal is to help students become more interested in science and understand how science can be used in everyday life. Students will learn practical skills such as planting, observing, measuring, collecting information, working in teams and solving problems. We also want students to understand issues such as food production, waste, water use and climate change. As the project grows, we will record how many students take part, the activities they complete, the crops they grow, the experiments they carry out and the solutions they create. We also hope students will share what they learn with their classmates, families and communities. Our biggest goal is to help young people see problems around them and believe that they can do something about them.
Project Category
My project is an existing project that I started
Project Stage
Pilot-Stage (We’ve tried an activity or two)
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
STEAM Garden helps students learn science by growing food and solving real problems in their school and community. Students learn about plants, soil, water, waste and climate change by doing practical activities. We use Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) to help young people understand environmental and food problems and create simple solutions.
Project title
STEAM Garden
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
Many students learn science mainly from textbooks and notes. They may know about plants, soil, climate change and the environment, but they do not always get the chance to practise what they have learned. At the same time, our communities face problems such as waste, pollution, poor farming practices, water problems and food insecurity. This is a problem because young people will grow up and face these challenges. They need to learn how to think, create, work together and find solutions. STEAM Garden helps solve this problem by giving students a place to learn through practical activities. They can grow food, study soil, save water, reuse waste and observe how the environment works. We want students to understand that science is not only something written in a textbook. Science can help us solve real problems in our homes, schools and communities.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
Over the next year, we want to improve our pilot garden and involve more students. We will continue growing crops and carrying out simple experiments. We will also try activities involving composting, waste reuse, water conservation and soil improvement. Students will work in teams and take responsibility for different parts of the garden. We will record our activities and results so that we can understand what works and what needs to improve. We also want to share what we learn through school presentations, demonstrations, pictures, videos and social media. We hope to work with other teachers, schools, farmers, environmental groups and other people who can help us learn more. Our long-term goal is to make STEAM Garden a project that other schools can copy and adapt. We want more young people to learn science by doing and use their knowledge to solve problems in their communities.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
What makes STEAM Garden different is that we are not using a garden only to grow food. We are using it as a classroom and a place for students to solve problems. Students can learn about science by planting and studying crops. They can use mathematics to measure plant growth, technology to record their work and engineering to design simple solutions. We also want students to work on problems they can actually see around them, such as waste, water use, poor soil and food production. Another important part is that students are involved in making decisions. They can ask questions, test ideas, make mistakes and try again. The project can also start with simple materials and a small space, so schools do not need expensive equipment to begin. Our main idea is simple: instead of only teaching students about science and the environment, give them a chance to use what they learn to solve real problems.
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
STEAM Garden is a school garden where students learn by doing. Students work together to grow crops and study how plants, soil and water work. They measure plant growth, collect information and discuss what they discover. We connect the garden to different STEAM subjects. Science helps students understand plants and the environment. Mathematics helps them measure and compare results. Technology helps them record and share information. Engineering helps them design simple solutions to problems. Arts helps them present their ideas in creative ways. Students will also look for problems around them. For example, they can investigate how waste can be reused, how water can be saved or how soil can be improved. Teachers will guide the students, but students will also make decisions and take responsibility for different parts of the project. The goal is not just to grow food. The goal is to help students become better thinkers, problem-solvers and young people who care about their environment. We want to start small, learn from our experience and improve the project so that other schools can also use the idea.
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
Our team include 22 students and a teacher who guides the project. The teacher helps us plan activities, while students help with planting, experiments, research, data collection and sharing our results. We work together and give different team members responsibility for different tasks. As the project grows, we hope to involve more students, teachers and people with useful skills.
