Grow It Green - Science Project - Grades 6-8 - 15-20 hours

Sep 22, 2026

Upload by Jiven

Grow It Green is a science project for Grades 6-8 designed around the driving question of reducing impact on local food-growing systems. Students investigate and test two approaches to growing vegetables, using research on sustainable gardening practices to monitor and minimize human impact. They evaluate competing design solutions, analyze data through a systematic process, and develop an experiment. The final output is a photo essay advocating sustainable gardening practices, with hydroponics as a specific focus.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPresentations

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time7 min

AccessFree to download

Driving Question

Project Description

Final Product

Area of Study and Timeframe

Key Standards Assessed

Rubrics and Planning Tools

Gold-Standard PBL Features

Challenging Problem or Question

Public Product and Authenticity

Sustained Inquiry and Reflection

Student Voice and Choice

Critique and Revision

Exploring Hunger and Water Filtration

The Project Path and Key Milestones

Launch

GROW IT GREEN Science Project | Grades 6-8 | 15-20 hours DRIVING QUESTION How can we reduce our impact on the food-growing systems available in our community? PROJECT DESCRIPTION WHY ULTIMATE DESIGN CHALLENGE? The world has limited resources and an ever-growing population. Meeting people’s nutritional needs in a sustainable way requires innovative thinking. In this project, students work toward two key science standards: monitoring and minimizing human impact, and evaluating competing designs. They experiment with and test two approaches to growing vegetables, grounding their experiment in research on sustainable gardening practices. Ultimately, students will translate their research into a photo essay. 2 PROJECT OVERVIEW FINAL PRODUCT A photo essay that takes a position on sustainable gardening practices generally, and hydroponics specifically. Sharing the photo essay with the Farm-Based Education Network >> at Shelburne Farms >> is one possible authentic audience option. AREA OF STUDY Earth and Space Science TIMEFRAME 15-20 hours AGE GROUP Grades 6-8 KEY STANDARDS ASSESSED NGSS.MS-ESS3-3 >> Monitoring & Minimizing Impact NGSS.MS-ETS1-2 >> Evaluate Competing Designs CCSS.SL.6.4 >> Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas CCSSPresen.WHSTt~~ ~~Know.6l-8ed.~~ ~~7ge~~>>~~ Research to Build and See APPENDIX 1 >> for the full list of standards. RUBRICS Project Rubric >> BIE Presentation Rubric >> PLANNING TOOLS AND TEMPLATES Project Design Companion >> Student Planning Sheet >> WHAT MAKES THIS PROJECT GOLD-STANDARD PBL? CHALLENGING PROBLEM OR QUESTION Food and water are two essential resources for life. In this project, students dig into the key standards of engineering design and human impact on resources to explore sustainable farming practices. PUBLIC PRODUCT Presenting the photo essay to a local community garden orthe Farm-Based Education Network >> at Shelburne Farms >> with the goal of persuading small-scale food producers to consider incorporating hydroponics into their practices. KEY KNOWLEDGE, UNDERSTANDING, AND SUCCESS SKILLS The key standards explored in this project ask students to evaluate how well competing design solutions solve a problem and to design a method of monitoring and minimizing human impact on the environment. Students employ research skills as they learn to follow a systematic process of collecting and analyzing data. AUTHENTICITY Scientific experimentation is a highly desirable and transferable skill. Students determine criteria and conduct research on a problem in the same way scientists in the field do on a larger scale. Finally, the skill of taking technical knowledge and translating it in an engaging way for a general audience is an integral part of many professional tasks. SUSTAINED INQUIRY Students begin their inquiry by visiting local gardening experts and generating questions about small-scale food production and the concept of hydroponics. Research on how human agriculture practices and water use impact the Earth’s finite resources leads into experimental design to explore the specific viability of hydroponics. REFLECTION Reflection is essential after students receive a critique on their experimental designs, before they begin the lab report revision process, and after the photo essayist critiques their photo essay. Students will reflect on the key content, the accuracy of their experiment and its findings, the persuasiveness of their photo essay, their contributions to the group, and their group’s effectiveness as a team. STUDENT VOICE AND CHOICE Student questions will shape their experimental design, as well as the focus, purpose, and format of their final project (a photo essay) . CRITIQUE & REVISION There are three specific “moments” in the project when critique and revision are essential: during the experimental design process, after the lab is drafted (the audience will critique the findings), and after the phot

FAQs

What is the project’s driving question and main goal?

The driving question asks how to reduce impact on community food-growing systems. Students work toward sustainable gardening practices by experimenting with vegetable-growing approaches and producing a persuasive photo essay.

What final product do students create?

Students create a photo essay that takes a position on sustainable gardening practices in general and hydroponics specifically, tailored for an audience such as the Farm-Based Education Network at Shelburne Farms.

How do students use critique and reflection during the project?

Critique and revision happen at three key moments: during experimental design, after the lab is drafted, and after the photo essay is drafted. Reflection follows critiques to address content, experiment accuracy, findings, persuasiveness, and teamwork.

Sep 22, 2026

Upload by Jiven