Eagle Creek is dedicated to giving students a “hands on” school experience that includes outdoor learning opportunities. They have researched area schools, attended the Minnesota Arboretum School garden conference to learn the value that gardening would add to the learning environment at Eagle Creek. They constructed six 4′ x 8′ raised garden beds and four 2′ x 4′ smaller elevated beds. Each grade level K-5 has a garden bed to plant and tend each year. They use the Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom guide with lessons connected to Minnesota state standards. Each grade level determines what they want to plant each year. Some ideas included themed beds for salads, pizza, and salsa and also a fall gourd and pumpkin garden. Some of the produce from their garden is distributed to students at the school. They also use the produce they planted for classroom activities. Their gardening offers hands-on, experiential learning opportunities in a wide variety of subject areas including the natural and social sciences, math and language arts. They have a garden group that consists of staff, students and parents that tend the garden throughout the summer. Watering is automatic through an irrigation system. They have a six-foot high chain link fence that can be locked when school is not in session. Their school staff and PTO are committed to continue to support this project. Along with their PTO and Shakopee High School environmental and construction programs, they have also reached out to the Mdewankaton Sioux community to partner with them.