Kindergarteners are a notoriously curious bunch.  Some of the best ideas and experiences in the classroom have come from spontaneous curiosity, especially when everyone is seated at the lunch table.  I wonder what would happen if… is a phrase that can be heard regularly at lunchtime. 

In 2016, after students learned about Johnny Appleseed, the man who collected and planted seeds which became apple orchards from Pennsylvania to Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and West Virginia, several of our students began to wonder out loud while munching on peppers and apples, “What if I planted seeds from my own lunch? What would happen?”

And so, we started collecting and sprouting seeds in our classroom until our sunniest window sills were full of jars and pots with little sprouts from students’ very own lunch boxes.  Students primarily sprouted apple seedlings, but some persevered and sprouted peppers, cherry tomato plants (over 40!), and we even had an orange tree seedling sprout after what felt like weeks of watching and waiting!  It was remarkable to see what conversations came next. Why did some seeds sprout and others didn’t?  Could the seedlings be transplanted? Would they survive the summer?  One particular student took his seedlings home, and recently we received a photo update from third-grader Tommy Curran '29, standing next to his waist-high apple tree this fall.  In subsequent years, students like Audrey Yerrington '31 were inspired to sprout and plant apple trees in the backyard. It is tremendous to see what unfolds when students lead us to the answers through their own questions and ponderings!

 The tradition continues to this day as Johnny Appleseed visits the Lower School in the fall, played by Fred Matlack.  Mr. Matlack graciously brings apples and the old cider press he repaired to give everyone a real demonstration. He gives a lively performance of John Chapman, aka Johnny Appleseed, the itinerant preacher and seed sprouter. Once again the students are dissecting apples, making applesauce and wondering what were to happen if we were to take out those seeds and plant them. What would blossom?