How BUGS Builds Community and Social-Emotional Safety is Featured in Green Schools Catalyst Quarterly

How does BUGS live its focus on whole-child development? What is our Advisory program? What have we learned and what strategies do we recommend?

The approach we take at Brooklyn Urban Garden Charter School (BUGS) to support whole child development is grounded in a robust Advisory program and sustainability curriculum as described in How BUGS Builds Community and Social-Emotional Safety by Jess Khawaja, Director of Sustainability,  and Anali Chavez, school counselor, in the April issue of “Green Schools Catalyst Quarterly.”

The BUGS Advisory program differs from other middle school programs in that it incorporates key elements of our sustainability mission, community focus, design thinking, and service learning. As Jess and Anali describe in the Quarterly, “...In Advisory, we focus on the ‘impact of each other’ component of sustainability. Students use Kid Talk (active student-focused conversations) to build close relationships that are sustained throughout their time at BUGS. Advisories also take on action projects as a means of community building. These are small scale, student-driven projects that arise from group discussions. For example, after a series of facilitated discussions on LGBTQ+ rights and intersectionality, one group of 8th grade students decided to start a school club called the People’s Equity Group. This group welcomed students from all grades, made posters for our hallways, and advocated for a Pride Celebration and Kindness Month.”

This past school year BUGS added an additional day of Advisory each week to provide space for students to talk about the anxiety, trauma, and grief they were experiencing and check in with their mentor-teacher and small group every day. Resources were also provided to support open form discussions and the teaching of coping strategies such as movement breaks and breathing exercises. 

The authors conclude the article with key takeaways and recommendations for schools looking to reinforce a sense of safety and build community. They include:

• Build Advisory, academic check-ins, and Kid Talk into the school schedule at least four mornings a week.

• Support staff in facilitating or moderating weekly optional “lunch tables”.

• Provide a virtual library of student-facing social-emotional learning (SEL) resources that is accessible on the school’s virtual education platform.

• Develop culturally-response Advisory lessons that can be amended as current events take shape.

“This has been such a tough year for BUGS students having to deal with the stress, anxieties, isolation and trauma of the pandemic, the loss of loved ones, having to enter a new school virtually, a wrench in their adolescent development, and the drastic change to their middle school lives. Our Advisory program was so important to help provide a  supportive space for dialogue, share perspectives,  build community and create connections. Thank you to Jess and Anali for sharing our Advisory program with other schools. And we hope to learn from other schools as well,” said Susan Tenner, Executive Director, BUGS.

We invite you to read How BUGS Builds Community and Social-Emotional Safety and please share with your colleagues too. A big thank you to Jess and Anali.

Irin Ajo: A Journey to Celebrate Black History Month

By Janaé Wonsley, Assistant for the Office of Student Affairs

Because Brooklyn Urban Garden Charter School (BUGS) is an inclusive community, it is imperative to celebrate all identities, all races, and all cultures. Black History Month is a time to pay homage to the richness of African culture, as well as honor the efforts and achievements of Africans and African Americans around the globe. Beyond our celebration in February, I want what we learn and experience during Black History Month to impact the ongoing and evolving conversation at BUGS about what it means to be truthfully diverse and inclusive -- not only within our school community but in our curriculum and through sincere alliance and activism as well.

As the person leading *virtual* Black History Month here at BUGS, my hope is to provide our students and community with a better understanding not only of what Black history is to America but also how Black history was made by our ancestors in Africa. I want this to be an insightful, impactful and JOYFUL celebration!  

This year for Black History Month, we are centering our celebration around the Yoruba tribal term, Irin Ajo, which simply means journey. My parents were very in tune with their African history and ancestry and they were both able to trace their ancestry back to the Yoruba people of Ghana and southwest Nigeria. In both of these places, Yoruba is the language of choice. Our Irin Ajo Black History Month celebration will allow our school community to see Black History evolve before our eyes.

Each week of the celebration will encompass a different theme. The first week's theme was "Honoring the Past of the African People" and we learned about ancient African civilizations, the rich legacies of African kings and queens, and the impact each kingdom made on modern-day arts, sciences, mathematics, and culture. Activities included: Fun Facts about Mansa Musa; Video/Short Answer Submission “What Does Black History Mean to You?”; Fun Facts about Queen Amanirenas and the Kingdom of Kush; Fun Facts about King Sundiata Keita; Black History Month Q&A - Virtual Lunch Table Discussion with me; Fun Facts about Makeda, Queen of Sheba; and Virtual Lunch Table - the History of African Dance and its influences on Modern Dance with Mr. Kid our Student Success Coach (OSA), 8th grade PE teacher, and 8th-grade Enrichment (Dance Teacher). 

This week’s theme is “From Slavery to Black Wall Street,” followed by “What About Our Rights?” and “Where To Next? A Look at Where Black History Stands Today.” 

What’s also really exciting is how our teachers are incorporating Black History Month into their curriculum too. Here are just a few examples. During advisory, students will watch an interview of Harvard professor and filmmaker Henry Louis Gates Jr. with Audie Cornish about his series Africa’s Great Civilizations, read about Nobel recipient Kenyan biologist and activist Wangari Maathai, and discuss how can victims of African diaspora reconnect to the many nations of the continent and what can our nation learn from innovators like Maathai. Students will also learn about Black sustainability changemakers who are doing amazing work on environmental issues – from urban and rural agriculturists to environmental justice advocates to naturalists and scientists. In 8th grade math, students are looking at systems that create wealth inequality in terms of household incomes and job opportunities and will create an action plan about how to remove those systems for their neighborhood. 

My hope is that by the end of Black History Month, our students are reflective and empowered to be agents of change. I want us to be educated about every aspect possible of Black history, so we can continue the conversation and be on our own journey as a school community to dismantle racism and lift up true inclusion and equality. The focus right now is on Black History Month, but this work continues all the time at BUGS. We as a school can make Black History.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank each and every person on the Black History Committee for lending their voices and their time to what the school community will experience this month and beyond. 

Let us know how you are celebrating Black History Month at your school.

Why BUGS Field Study Matters

Written by Jess Khawaja, Director of Sustainability 

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Our students are going to face major sustainability challenges: fighting climate change; achieving social justice and racial equity; and designing healthy and balanced natural systems so that all people and our planet can thrive. 

As educators and parents, we need to think "outside the classroom" to help our kids understand and gain the skills to tackle these complex challenges. Getting excited about science, learning how to work together, and analyzing data are 21st-century skills our students will need to succeed. And, they can develop these skills outside.

“Sam” is the sort of kid who struggles to sit still and quiet in the classroom. Remote learning has been particularly rough for this student. However, the long hours in front of a screen seem to melt away as she greets her friends for Field Study at Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. Thirty minutes in and Sam is leading her group toward the water to collect a sample for testing. They are speculating on the acidity of the lake water, noting the presence of geese, swans, and an oily substance at the water’s edge. At the end of the day, Sam asks, “Can we do this again?”

Active learning and Field Study also reflects our understanding of how to engage and motivate middle school students. Middle school bodies are changing almost by the minute, their minds are stretching and testing, their brains are wired to gravitate to peer groups. Field Study offers chances to expand learning, get up and move, use new skills in groups, and explore the world in ways not possible within the four walls of a classroom or in front of a computer screen. 

In this post, I’ll explain our “Field Study” approach, its impact on staff and students, and why it’s more relevant than ever as we face the challenges of educating and nurturing students during a pandemic.

What is Field Study?

Field Study at BUGS is designed to encourage students to investigate contemporary environmental and social sustainability issues. Students visit the same site repeatedly, and track changes over time. For example, our 6th graders study urban ecology and urban green spaces. They manage our  gardens and visit Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and other urban farming sites. During recent Field Studies in Green-Wood Cemetery, they collected weekly data on specific trees in order to track seasonal changes. This work is known as “phenology” and is a process used by scientists to measure the impacts of climate change. 

During Field Study, students use all five senses to investigate their surroundings. They document what they see, hear, and feel through drawing and writing. Time is also dedicated to slowing down and working together. In November, students built forts in small groups in Prospect Park to start their Biome Survival Project in Science. 

Students also conduct “Remote” Field Study independently in their local community. This year, students are participating in the NYC Street Trees project by adopting a street tree on their block. They learn, test the soil around the trees, and design projects to make sure the trees can thrive

Field Study research and exploration culminate in end-of-year community action projects that incorporate plans for change and are presented to their Sustainability class, guest community panelists, and school staff. 

Why Field Study Matters

“I had a really good time meeting the people in my class and doing the different garden tasks. One thing I liked about being in the garden was that I got to lead my own tasks. I also liked the feeling of the community in the garden. Everyone was helping each other." 

– Mateo, Sixth Grader

Even in our urban context in Brooklyn, NY, students can tune into the natural world and observe the interplay between people, planet, and profit. Whether they are in the BUGS gardens or the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Field Study encourages students to make connections about how systems support life on earth and our dependence on natural resources, appreciating the responsibilities of environmental stewardship and equity, and understanding how nature can inspire design, creativity, and new ways of thinking.

“Field Study has been amazing. We did a walk in the park yesterday and my daughter pointed out all of the things she learned on her Field Study day.” -- mother of BUGS 6th grader

FIeld Study Connects Staff and Students

While our goal is to graduate students who are urban citizens, committed to preserving the natural world, and stopping climate change, one of the most important elements of Field Study during the pandemic is to simply provide an environment for kids to safely develop relationships in person with their support systems of teachers, mentors, and friends. We can do that when we are outside.

Field Study also provides new dimensions to teaching and opportunities for unplanned but impactful “teachable moments” that might not be able to happen in the classroom. Designing a system for deciding which students would lead a 6th grade group in an eco-scavenger hunt in Prospect Park offered real world learning about civics and orderly transition of power.

Field Study Supports All Learners

I am a true believer in active classrooms and outdoor classrooms as a way to support a wide-range of learners. In fact, a 2004 study by the National Institute of Health found that increased outdoor activity reduced observable symptoms of ADHD in children and adolescents (Kuo & Faber, 2004). Field Study at BUGS offers students who may have an ADHD diagnosis; (or have a range of learning styles or just need to move their bodies more), movement in and stimulation by the  beauty and solace of the natural world. 

It’s been incredible interacting with students on Field Studies this fall who haven't been outside in six months – not even outside their apartment! Many others had only gone a few blocks away. They show up to Field Studies so reserved: nervous, quiet. By end of the day, they blossom – hoods come down, they’re laughing, they’re even skipping! If in only five hours that kind of change can take place, it’s evident that what we’re doing can have a lasting impact now more than ever.

“I think the benefit of having our gardens is that it can bring people joy. It brings peace and happiness to people walking in the garden and looking at all the different, beautiful living creatures.” - Bowen, 7th grade

I remember in September the NYC Department of Education convened lots of meetings about outdoor learning, and the pride I felt in being able to say we already do this at my school. BUGS is lucky to be in a city with so many amazing organizations and individuals doing work that complements our sustainability mission (see the list below). 

“It feels so good to breath fresh air!”  -  6th grade student 

There’s magic to be had in the soft mud by a lake, caring for the trees right outside your window, planting seeds, or exploring deep in Prospect Park. We do right by our kids when we connect them to nature. We should always make time to let our children explore in the woods, or just the sidewalk tree pit, a bit longer. 

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Be sure to sign up for the blog and follow us on Instagram to see our Field Studies! You can start on Field Studies of your own by exploring some of our partner organizations:

• Green-wood Cemetery

• Brooklyn Botanical Garden

• Prospect Park Alliance

• Wildlife Conservation Society (Prospect Park Zoo, Aquarium)

• DSNY

• Big Reuse to expand composting on site and to neighborhood

• Billion Oyster Project

• Gowanus Canal Conservancy

• NYC Parks Department

• Green Schools National Network

• The Ashokan Center

• Children Environmental Literacy Foundation

Kuo, F. E., & Faber Taylor, A. (2004). A potential natural treatment for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: evidence from a national study. American journal of public health, 94(9), 1580-1586.