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High School Grade  Project 4 weeks

Farm the Future: Solutions for Food Scarcity

Michael P
Updated
CCSS.Math.Content.HSN-VM.A.1
CCSS.Math.Content.HSA-SSE.A.2
CCSS.Math.Practice.MP6
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.7
HS-PS1-8
+ 5 more
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Purpose

The 5-Day Food Scarcity Investigation: Seeds of Change aims to equip high school students with a deep understanding of global food scarcity and empower them to explore and implement innovative urban farming solutions like hydroponics and vertical farming. Through hands-on activities, expert engagement, and community collaboration, students investigate real-world food challenges and apply interdisciplinary skills to develop sustainable food production strategies. This project-based learning experience fosters critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving, ultimately preparing students to contribute meaningful solutions to enhance urban food security.

Learning goals

The learning goals for this experience encompass developing competencies in interdisciplinary collaboration, where students actively engage with environmental science professionals and community partners to address food scarcity. Students will apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills to design innovative urban farming solutions, such as hydroponics and vertical farming, tailored to local urban needs. They will enhance effective communication through presentations and feedback sessions with peers and experts, while fostering a sense of responsibility to their communities by contributing to sustainable food systems and analyzing socio-economic impacts of food scarcity. Additionally, students will cultivate self-directed learning by reflecting on their progress and incorporating feedback to refine their projects.

Standards
  • [Common Core] CCSS.Math.Content.HSN-VM.A.1 - (+) Recognize vector quantities as having both magnitude and direction. Represent vector quantities by directed line segments, and use appropriate symbols for vectors and their magnitudes (e.g., v, |v|, ||v||, v).
  • [Common Core] CCSS.Math.Content.HSA-SSE.A.2 - Use the structure of an expression to identify ways to rewrite it.
  • [Common Core] CCSS.Math.Practice.MP6 - Attend to precision.
  • [Common Core] CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.7 - Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
  • [Next Generation Science Standards] HS-PS1-8 - Develop models to illustrate the changes in the composition of the nucleus of the atom and the energy released during the processes of fission, fusion, and radioactive decay.
Competencies
  • Self Directed Learning - Students use teacher and peer feedback and self-reflection to monitor and direct their own learning while building self knowledge both in and out of the classroom.
  • Academic Mindset - Students establish a sense of place, identity, and belonging to increase self-efficacy while engaging in critical reflection and action.
  • Critical Thinking & Problem Solving - Students consider a variety of innovative approaches to address and understand complex questions that are authentic and important to their communities.
  • Content Expertise - Students develop key competencies, skills, and dispositions with ample opportunities to apply knowledge and engage in work that matters to them.
  • Effective Communication - Students practice listening to understand, communicating with empathy, and share their learning through exhibiting, presenting and reflecting on their work.

Products

Throughout the investigation, students will create detailed research posters, interactive system diagrams, and design plans for a hydroponic city garden. By the end, they will build a working model of a hydroponic vertical farm. Additionally, students will develop dishes using produce from the farm to present during the showcase event, connecting culinary skills with sustainable agriculture knowledge. Each product emphasizes practical application and real-world relevance, encouraging students to share these creations during public exhibitions and digital storytelling presentations.

Launch

Invite students to a dramatic viewing of "Starved: Our Insecurity Crisis," pausing at key moments to facilitate reflective discussions on the realities of food scarcity. Follow this with an interactive, expert-led session where students envision adaptive urban farming solutions, using brainstormed ideas to draft initial project concepts for a community vertical garden. To inspire creative thinking, present real cases of innovative urban farming that succeeded against the odds, asking students to connect these examples to potential local applications.

Exhibition

Students will host a "Community Garden Showcase" in April, inviting families, community members, and local leaders to explore a student-built vertical hydroponic garden. Attendees will learn about innovative urban farming techniques and how these practices can create sustainable communities. The showcase will feature presentations, a Q&A session on food security challenges and solutions, and opportunities to taste dishes prepared from the garden's produce, highlighting the practical applications of students' work and its impact on the local community.