✉️ To Parents
This week's nonfiction piece is based on real-world environmental action. Students transform an empty parking lot into a community garden. The article emphasizes past perfect and present perfect tenses, real-world project vocabulary, and builds awareness of teamwork and sustainability. It encourages students to see that even small groups can make a big difference.
📖 Today's Reading
What can you do with an old parking lot full of cracked concrete and weeds?
At Lincoln Elementary, a group of fifth graders decided not to complain—but to change it.Last fall, they presented an idea to their principal: turn the abandoned lot into a school garden.
They worked for months. First, they pulled out trash and weeds. Then, they built raised beds from recycled wood. Some kids planted vegetables; others designed spaces for flowers and butterflies.
Local stores donated seeds and tools. Parents volunteered on weekends. Even the mayor visited and planted a tree!
By spring, the gray lot had become a living, growing place.
Carrots, sunflowers, strawberries, and mint now filled the space with colors and smells. Students who once hurried past the lot now stopped to water, harvest, and admire what they had created.
"We wanted to show that even kids can turn something forgotten into something beautiful," said Ava, one of the student leaders.
And they did.
🧠 New Vocabularies
- garden /ˈɡɑr.dən/ – They planted a garden in the old lot.
- abandoned /əˈbæn.dənd/ – The parking lot had been abandoned for years.
- volunteer /ˌvɑ.lənˈtɪr/ – Parents volunteered to help build the garden.
- harvest /ˈhɑr.vɪst/ – Students harvest vegetables in the spring.
- recycled /riˈsaɪ.kəld/ – They used recycled wood for the beds.
- sustainability /səˌsteɪ.nəˈbɪl.ə.ti/ – The project taught lessons about sustainability.
✍️ Hi, Kids!
Imagine you could change a forgotten place near your home or school.
What would you create—a garden, a playground, a library? Start writing like this: 'We looked at the old space and imagined a new future: a place where...'
❓ Questions
Choose the best answer for each question:
- What was the students’ idea for the parking lot?
A. Build a shopping mall B. Make a skate park C. Turn it into a garden D. Fill it with cars - What did the students do first?
A. Plant carrots B. Pull weeds and trash C. Paint the walls D. Call the news - Who helped the students?
A. Only teachers B. Only the mayor C. Parents and local stores D. Tourists - What filled the garden by spring?
A. Tall buildings B. New cars C. Flowers, fruits, and vegetables D. Statues - What lesson did the students show the community?
A. Kids can ignore problems B. Only adults can make changes C. Forgotten spaces can be beautiful again D. Gardens grow without care
🌟 Good Job
Fantastic work exploring how small actions lead to big change! 🌱🌎
When you imagine something better and work together, you don’t just change places—you change hearts.
