Peter Woodbury School gears up for
the final phase of their Community School Yard!
The school
yard is used throughout the school day by classes doing such things as
performing erosion experiments, planting in their class gardens, checking the
weather stations, or digging for dinosaur bones. Monarchs dry their wings before their fall
flights to Central America on the butterfly bushes that adorn the gazebo. The PWS Garden Club meets on Friday
afternoons. They will again be growing
fresh produce to donate to Caregivers, Inc.
On weekends and afterschool, families come to walk the path and explore.
Now, after 3
years of building and fundraising, the PWS Community School Yard is ready for its
final phase. The new outdoor structure will
be reminiscent of Bedford’s agricultural roots.
An open concept post and beam barn, the structure will be big enough to
host two classrooms for out of doors learning and presentations. A raised stage area will be the perfect venue
for imaginative play and performance. It
will be a welcomed shady respite on a hot sunny day.
Last August, locally harvested logs were taken
to Jesse Remington High School in Candia.
Under the direction of Jeff Philbrick, students in the timber-framing
program have been chiseling the mortise and tenon joints that join the
structure. Depending on weather, there should be a good old fashioned barn
raising the week before Memorial Day.
Greg Rehm, a PWS parent and owner of Liberty Hill Construction, has
volunteered to be the general contractor, coordinating the efforts of Jesse
Remington High School, Dave DeJohn and Grant N. Jones Services, as well as our
volunteer labor force.
Completion
of the structure, including a steel roof, gable end siding, and floor should be
by July 1—just in time for the Bedford Garden Club tour.
Peter
Woodbury School would like to sincerely thank folks for their generous support
over these years of building. “One generation plants the trees, another gets
the shade”.
