Science teacher Jill Lloyd is one of eight educators in the state selected to receive a mini-grant from the Georgia Science Teachers Association (GSTA).

Lloyd, who teaches biology at Sandy Creek High, has been awarded a $750 grant from the association to help create a sustainable garden that, in addition to growing plants and vegetables, will also serve as an outdoor learning area for students at the school as well as those at neighboring Robert J. Burch Elementary and Flat Rock Middle. With the funds, she will purchase fencing, landscape fabric and one book for each vegetable that will be grown in the garden.

As part of her grant proposal, “Bring the Classroom to the Garden,” Lloyd’s students will work with teachers at neighboring Robert J. Burch Elementary to create lessons focused on each of the vegetables along with an arts and crafts activity that will connect to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) subjects, and a recipe for each vegetable that will be created onsite. The lessons, activity and recipe will be developed for each elementary grade level and given as a package to teachers at Burch so that their students can participate in and learn from the garden.

A total of 12 teachers across the state submitted mini-grant applications this year. The purpose of the mini-grants is to fund creative classroom projects.