Planting the Love of Earth

The Ahliyyah School for Girls, Amman, Jordan.

Students:
Sara Moubaydeen (Grade 10)
Sandra Sayej (Grade 10)
Joud Al Fayez (Grade 10)
Amanda Naffa' (Grade 10)
Ghadeer Al Yaseri (Grade 11)
Rula Kheetan(Grade 9)

Yara Al Ghoul (Grade 7)
Juliana Salsa' (Grade 7)
Ghalia Al-Shahid (Grade 7)

Supervisor:
Qais Al Hinti

Special Thanks to:
Mrs Mirna Msharbash: Head of KG Department
KG Department Teachers
Ms Haya Abdul Raheem

To begin with, one of the major problems that Jordan faces is the fact that it is one of the four poorest countries in water resources and as a result the percentage of forests in Jordan does not exceed 1%. Moreover, only 7% of land in Jordan is fertile but unfortunately is not used always properly to achieve the best of it. The watering systems that some farmers follow are not very effective and ideal; for huge amounts of that water end up going to waste. People nowadays are less interested in planting crops than before which has had its negative effect on Jordan.

At the beginning of the brainstorming process, we were determined to help tackle one of the major problems Jordan faces by simple steps starting with the young children from Kindergarten (KG2). The team came up with several ideas to get the children motivated and have fun by planting seedlings and watch them grow throughout the year. The team then brought their ideas to the teachers of the Kindergarten department, and much to our delight; we were able to arrange several activities for the children to do that will help increase their love for earth and nature.

The activities main aim was not to have the children plant seedlings but to plant the love of earth in the children. One class at a time, we would talk to them about the importance of plants, what they need to grow, the role of fertilizers and our responsibilities towards them. Before taking the children to plant, we also talked to them about the importance of water and how to use it smartly and our duty not to waste it. Each class had to plant two pots with seedlings including Tomatoe, Chili Peppers, Sweet Peppers, Cabbage, Parsley, Onions, Eggplant and Fennel. The children were asked to add fertilizers and mix them up with the soil, as well as planting the seedling properly and then water it using a watering can.

We also began a similar project with KG1 students, where they planted the vast area around the sand/play area with several types of flowers such as the African daisy. Due to the success of both projects, the Kindergarten department decided to adopt these projects and continue implementing them in further years.

In short, in this project, we're aimed at tackling the problem of little percentage of green plants in Jordan by starting with the young kids. We hope that through this project we were able to plant the love of earth in each and every little child so that they will grow with this love, care and appreciation towards earth. By teaching the young children the importance of plants and water, how to take care of them and what they will provide us in the future will hopefully change the future of Jordan, by becoming greener.

Due to the success of the project, our future plans for the upcoming week include introducing young children to various animals, opening their eyes to the biodiversity around them. We are aiming at placing a different kind of animal in all of the Kindergarten classes where the students will learn to engage with animals and treat them gently, passionately and lovingly and keep away from abusing them. The classes will exchange the animals each week so that each class will get to be involved with more animals. We'll send you the photos of this activity in around two weeks.

Moreover, this project is part of a larger project we are implementing at the school in which we are working on several themes, including water, biodiversity, energy, recycling, reusing, and reducing. Our group began communications with the Elementary Department recently to get involved in their environmental activities with the students for the coming year.

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