LOVELAND MAGAZINE

News and Events from the Loveland, Ohio Area

Without fear or favor
Since 2004

Tag: classroom

  • Volunteer with the Loveland Learning Garden and “Nurture Young Minds and Nature”

    Volunteer with the Loveland Learning Garden and “Nurture Young Minds and Nature”

    David Miller is the Editor and Publisher of Loveland Magazine

    by David Miller

    Loveland, Ohio – The mission of Loveland Learning Garden is to foster lifelong connections to the wonders of the natural world. Their mission statement says, “We believe in the benefits of immersing kids in the outdoors from a young age and the lasting impact of positive impressions with nature.” To support this, the non-profit creates and manages garden and nature-based programs on school grounds for elementary students. “Our garden and nature trail are used to enhance classroom study while allowing children an opportunity to experience nature, the satisfaction of growing their own food, and contributing harvest to the local food pantry.”

    Description

    The program in Loveland serves ~1,400 1st through 4th-grade students and has been a local and national role model for outdoor school garden and nature programs. Working in collaboration with school administration and staff, they offer a complete package of services that include:

    • Design and year-round maintenance of educational food garden and nature trail on school grounds.
    • A customized, age-appropriate curriculum aligned with both school and state requirements
    • A schedule of outdoor learning classes is provided for classroom teacher signup
    • Nature educators prepared to teach interactive lessons
    • A non-profit board overseeing results and building a sustainable operation with strong school and teacher partnership
    • Hands-on learning enhancing student understanding of science, math, social studies, health, and the natural world as they interact with their environment.
    • After-school enrichment programs and community events
    • Donation to the local food pantry and use of all food grown
    • Student discovery of plant cycles, garden habitats, food production, and fresh produce
    • Student connection and observation of change in nature

    The Learning Garden is on the search for Nature Educators to lead lessons in the garden and/or nature trail during the school day or as part of our afterschool program this fall. Here is the link to the Volunteer Match.

    Come volunteer with other like-minded people in the beautiful learning garden. No experience is necessary, the new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary and Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Road. The garden is in between the buildings when looking from the street side. Look for a garden shed with the Learning Garden logo, Bring your family and friends. Children are welcome, Feel free to leave early or come later as needed.

    Upcoming Opportunities

    You can help students navigate the nature trail
    • Come help us make kids smile outdoors! Aug 22 – Oct 28. An outdoor hands-on nature education program. Loveland Learning Garden offers interactive lessons in our schoolyard garden and nature trail to 1st-4th graders during the school day. Classroom teachers signup to bring their students outside to learn and our Nature Educators take over. We offer lessons on weekdays in 40-minute slots between the hours of 9:30-3:30pm.
    • Help in garden!! (No experience necessary) Aug 19, 4:00 PM – 07:00 PM. Come volunteer with us in our beautiful learning garden! No experience necessary, our new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary & Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Rd. The Garden is in between the buildings.
    • Help in garden!! (No experience necessary) Aug 17, 4:30 PM – 07:30 PM. Come volunteer with us in our beautiful learning garden! No experience is necessary, Our new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary & Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Rd. The Garden is in between the buildings .
    • Help in garden!! (No experience necessary)Aug 7, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Come volunteer with us in our beautiful learning garden! No experience necessary, our new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary & Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Rd. Garden is in between the building whenDate Posted: July 25, 2022
    • Help in garden!! (No experience necessary) Aug 27, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Come volunteer with us in our beautiful learning garden! No experience necessary, our new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary & Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Rd. Garden is in between the building whenDate Posted: July 25, 2022
    • Help in garden!! (No experience necessary) Aug 26, 4:30 PM – 07:30 PM. Come volunteer with us in our beautiful learning garden! No experience necessary, our new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary & Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Rd. Garden is in between the building whenDate Posted: July 25, 2022
    • Help in garden!! (No experience necessary)Aug 20, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Come volunteer with us in our beautiful learning garden! No experience necessary, our new garden manager will be there to guide you all along the way. Tasks may include transplanting, planting seeds, weeding, laying wood chips, compost management, etc. Meet at the garden located in between the Loveland Primary & Elementary schools on Loveland Madeira Rd. Garden is in between the building.
    INFO@LOVELANDLEARNINGGARDEN.ORG

    Read this story by Cassie Mattia and watch this video LM published in August of last year

    How to Get Involved With The Loveland Learning Garden!

    by Cassie Mattia

    Loveland, Ohio – Would you like to make a difference and give back to the community? Local non-profit, The Loveland Learning Garden, provides the opportunity for anyone to volunteer to help teach local students about the environment, or maintain the vegetable garden, the flower garden, and the nature trail!

    Read on…

    Check out the video below as Laurie Flanagan explained how you can help the Loveland Learning Garden!

    Here are some photos provided by the Learning Garden to show you what a wonderful program you can be involved in.

    Follow the Loveland Learning Garden on Instagram and FaceBook.

    Email to: INFO@LOVELANDLEARNINGGARDEN.ORG

  • DeWine relaxes guidance for COVID 19 classroom quarantine

    DeWine relaxes guidance for COVID 19 classroom quarantine

    “Students and teachers exposed to a COVID-positive person in school are no longer required to quarantine as long as the exposure occurred in a classroom setting and all students/teachers were wearing masks and following other appropriate protocols.”

    by David Miller

    Loveland, Ohio – Governor Mike DeWine announced Wednesday that Ohio is changing its guidance regarding quarantines following an in-classroom exposure in K-12 schools. The Ohio Department of Health said, “Moving forward, students and teachers exposed to a COVID-positive person in school are no longer required to quarantine as long as the exposure occurred in a classroom setting and all students/teachers were wearing masks and following other appropriate protocols.”

    The change follows an evaluation of virus spread in Ohio schools conducted by researchers with the Ohio Schools COVID-19 Evaluation Team. Preliminary results of the evaluation found no discernable difference in the risk of contracting the coronavirus between those in close contact with a COVID-positive person in the classroom and those who were farther away.  

    Loveland Magazine has reached out to Loveland Superintendent, Dr. Amy Crouse and the District health team to inquire whether the District will adopt DeWine’s newest protocol, however, neither are available for immediate response. (Thank you for your email. Our offices are closed through Sunday, January 3, 2021.  I am out of the office with limited access to email.)

    Loveland school students return to the classroom on Monday, January 4.

    “This evaluation confirms for us that Ohio’s classrooms are a safe place for our students and that the commitment our schools have made to keeping kids safe in the classroom is working,” said DeWine.

    Schools should continue to require quarantines for exposed students in situations where masking and distancing protocols were not followed. The updated quarantine guidance does not apply to after-school activities, including sports, according to the new guidelines.

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced in early December new quarantine guidelines for people who were exposed to coronavirus, reducing the length of time from 14 days to 10 days without symptoms or seven days with no symptoms and a negative test. The Loveland School District announced on December 4 that they would implement these less stringent quarantine requirements.

    Meanwhile: The Associated Press reports that California has the nation’s 2nd confirmed case of a new and apparently more contagious variant of the coronavirus. Read on…

    Here is the last Covid 19 Dashboard that was published by the District (12/12/20 -12/18/20) right after classes dismissed for Winter Break:


    Statewide Curfew extended for another three weeks

    The Ohio Department of Health is extending the 10 PM to 5 AM statewide curfew for another three weeks until January 23. Governor Mike DeWine said, “This is b/c we don’t yet know what effect the holidays may have on our hospitals and health care systems, so we must continue to be cautious.”

  • Opportunities for Tiger Growth – The State Report Card

    Opportunities for Tiger Growth – The State Report Card

    “It is my belief that the true value of any district cannot be limited to a simple grade on a standardized test.”

    By Dr. Amy Crouse,

    Our district mission is Preparing Students for Tomorrow, Today; our No. 1 district goal is Tiger academic growth. As such, our educational instructional leaders at every level – teachers in the classroom, principals managing the buildings and administrators specializing in Teaching & Learning at the Board Office – stay focused on measures of our performance. One data point we are equipped with to gauge performance is the annual State Report Card, which the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) released to the public Thursday, September 14.

    I want to be clear that – as an educator with 20-plus years of experience serving students – it is my belief that the true value of any district cannot be limited to a simple grade on a standardized test which is what the ODE State Report Card reflects. We are in the business of whole student growth, which encompasses the complete student experience, to include academic, social and emotional development. I invite you to take a look at the way we do business through our Quality Profile Report – it is a complement to the State Report Card scores and will give you a more intimate view of what it means to be a Tiger.   

    Whether we agree or disagree with our state assessments, I do have a strong belief in accountability, and understand that the State Report Card is one tool of accountability that can be of value. The State Report Card grades districts and schools on six components – Achievement, Progress, Gap Closing, Graduation Rate, K-3 Literacy and Prepared for Success. Districts and schools received an A-F grade on each of the six components and most of the individual measures. While this – on the surface – sounds like a simple pass/fail – the explanations behind those letter-grade measures are much more complex.

    In Loveland, we can celebrate a gain in the Gap Closing measure as all of our subgroups showed gains in reading, we made strides in the K-3 Literacy measure, and 20 out of 23 tested areas showed an increase in performance. While we will highlight our successes, we will not ignore the areas the State Report Card highlights as opportunities for growth.

    One area we are focused on is our Progress measure

    One area we are focused on is our Progress measure, which is an indicator of student growth. Our Board of Education made clear it was of paramount importance that we deliver on the expectation that every Tiger will demonstrate personal academic growth, which is the heart of our Growth goal for this school year. As such, entrenched in our building goals is increased time and focus for teachers to collaborate on: curriculum work planning lessons aligned to the state standards and vertically aligned to increase rigor for students as they progress through the grades; assessment work using student MAP data to meet students where they are and measure their individual growth; and, instruction work to improve student engagement and opportunities for their application of their learning. We feel strongly this focus will move the needle for us on Progress.

    We feel strongly this focus will move the needle for us on Progress.

    As always, I thank you for supporting our educational mission; I invite you to contact me directly should you have any questions or concerns regarding our State Report Card.    

    In service to our Tigers,

    Dr. Amy Crouse

    Dr. Crouse is Interim Superintendent of the Loveland City School District

    Loveland Magazine
    Published by David Miller

    We are celebrating and proud to be a member of the Ohio News Media Association along with more than 250 Ohio daily and weekly newspapers including, The Columbus Dispatch, Plain Dealer, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal, Dayton Daily News, and The Toledo Blade. Loveland Magazine was the first “digital only member”.