School gardens help students learn science and connect with agriculture – but making them happen isn’t easy

In an urbanized and globalized world, most kids aren’t directly connected to agriculture. School gardens can help them learn where their food comes from.

By: Shelley Mitchell, Oklahoma State University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: April 23, 2026

Words: 980

Last Updated: 3 months, 1 week ago

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By Shelley Mitchell, Oklahoma State University

I used to teach high school science in Oklahoma, and one day I brought in a stalk from a cotton plant with bolls of cotton still attached. Students asked me why I glued cotton balls to a stick.

My students and I lived in a rural town surrounded by pastures of cattle and goats and fields of wheat, soybeans and cotton. I was amazed to learn how little my students …

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