Meridian Micro Farm is a student-run micro farm, learning lab and 21st century Erdkinder in Cincinnati, Ohio.
"While one-to-one relationships, a string of individual 1:1 relationships, or participation in an online group can provide some benefits—including a feeling of connection—they fall far short of actually producing community, which requires overlapping institutions and activities, things that are very hard to achieve if you don’t share a physical place with one another."
We've forgotten what community really means.
High tunnel, hoop house or mini greenhouse? At Meridian Micro Farm, students are given the autonomy to make all decisions, with guidance from experts in marketing, accounting and urban farming. We're excited to share with you the inaugural class choice!
We're happy to be part of the growing phone-free schools movement!
In the fall of 2023 Common Sense Media published a news release reporting that some teens get as many as 55 (or more) notifications during school hours on their smartphones. Think about that…about 9- 10 times per hour, they are getting interrupted/distracted.
The need for deep thought is real when it comes to learning and exploring higher levels of academics. Constant notifications/alarms/vibrations are interrupting learning and stealing time. Get phones out of schools, and learn how to start the movement by listening to this week’s episode on the Healthy Screen Habits Podcast.
Phone Free Schools Movement has research, real-life stories and help for how to stop school distraction from cell phones, talk to administration and reclaim education.
👉️ Listen on any of your favorite podcast platforms.
It's going to be a cool, cool summer! ☀️
Check out the summer camps being offered by our sister studio, Meridian Micro School, for campers age 5-12.
Summer Camps It’s going to be a cool, cool summer! Meridian Micro summer camps are unlike any other in Cincinnati! What makes our camps unique? Our hands-on small group learning ensures campers have the summer they deserve.Camp guides are professionals in their respective fields with lots of exper...
We're excited to share that Meridian Micro Farm has been granted non-profit status. 🎉
Are you a volunteer interested in being part of the grassroots evolution of education, particularly at the adolescent level?
Reach out via PM or email: [email protected] to connect! 🌱
Did you miss our March virtual info session? We're now enrolling for the 2024-2025 school year! Check out the FAQs below and contact us to join the April info session.
https://www.meridian-learning.org/studios/meridian-micro-farm/adolescent-program/adolescent-faq/
While this page has been on a bit of a hiatus, the work to launch our micro farm has continued. 🌱
Stay tuned for updates!
2022 YEAR IN REVIEW 🍾🥂
This year, Meridian reached target enrollment for all of our programs. We sponsored Montessori training for two of our professional educators. We grew our grassroots microschools resource and support group to over 900 members, and grew our grassroots microschool directory to over 30 schools. We also received a grant which will enable us to offer scholarships for our elementary summer camps. 🎉
In 2023, we look forward to launching our adolescent program with the formation of a new 501c3, Meridian Micro Farm. ✨
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
~Margaret Mead
☀️
Thanks to all the Meridian families who joined us for our end-of-year gathering (Zak Morgan + Madcap Puppets for the amazing entertainment)! Today and every day, we celebrate our students' accomplishments and our mighty micro Meridian community. ✨
Onward, forward to 2022-2023! 🌱🌎
"An education capable of saving humanity is no small undertaking; it involves the spiritual development of man, the enhancement of his value as an individual, and the preparation of young people to understand the times in which they live.” ~Maria Montessori
Our mission to accomplish joyful, meaningful learning during another unprecedented school year is complete. We look forward to the 2022-2023 school year. See you on the other side of Labor Day, friends!
"It’s no secret that young people today are stressed. A poll by the American Psychological Association revealed that high-school kids are the most stressed-out people in America, and 83 percent of them attribute their stress to school."
Attending an elite college provides no long-term advantage to most students.
How does our garden grow? With our Meridian primary friends all in a row! 🥕
Primary class students plant their class garden. 🌱
"The trend toward giantism continues. The number of high schools with more than 1,500 students doubled in the last decade. Two-fifths of the nation’s secondary schools now enroll more than 1,000 students. Some schools have as many as 5,000 students and enrollments of 2,000 or 3,000 are common.
Proponents argue that big schools allow for more courses, advanced equipment and significantly lower cost, per pupil year, than small schools. But, a growing number of critics are asking, do big schools produce better students?"
Higher graduation rates, less violence, a sense of belonging instead of alienation: the case for small schools is supported by mountains of evidence and a growing number of innovative models. But many state and local governments persist in consolidation efforts, fueled by a misguided belief in the e...
Meridian Micro Farm is seeking community collaborators, guest experts and others interested in being part of the evolution of education, particularly at the adolescent level. Reach out via PM or email: [email protected] to connect!
A key component of our adolescent project, an extension of our elementary programs at Meridian Micro School, is community-based, experiential learning. Check out this video showcasing one of the schools that inspired us, Metro High School Chicago.
METRO!!!: THE SCHOOL WITHOUT WALLS, Rod Nordberg, 1970, Color, Optical Sound, 18 min. Preserved by Chicago Film Archives with support from the National Film Preservation…
Thank you, teachers!
"To stimulate life, leaving it free, however, to unfold itself--that is the first duty of the educator.”
This Teacher Appreciation Week, we're giving a shout-out to the professional educators who, in collaboration with students and their families, guide Meridian Learning microschools with passion, purpose and empowered action. Learn more about our teaching team at Meridian-Learning.org/about.
🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱
Microfarms are common in the agricultural and farming industries, and allow farmers to tend to animals and grow crops on a smaller scale, and usually right in the middle of busy, bustling city centers.
Check out the amazing line-up of hands-on camps happening this summer at our sister school, Meridian Micro School!
Visit Meridian Micro School for more info and registration link.
This is a longer but necessary read for all those desiring to or finding it difficult to move away from the current mainstream model of secondary education.
"The need which is so keenly felt for a reform of secondary schools concerns not only an educational, but also a human and social problem. This can be summed up in one sentence: Schools as they are today, are adapted neither to the needs of adolescence nor to the times in which we live. Society has not only developed into a state of utmost complication and extreme contrasts, but it has now come to a crisis in which the peace of the world and civilization itself is threatened. The crisis is certainly connected with the immense progress that has been made in science and its practical applications, but it has not been caused by them. More than anything it is due to the fact that the development of man himself has kept pace with that of the external environment."
The Erdkinder and the Functions of the University by Maria Montessori by Maria Montessori | Adolescence, Early Adolescence (12-15), Free Reads, Later Adolescence (15-18), Maria Montessori, Montessori Education, Montessori Middle School, Montessori Secondary / High School, Young Adolescent, Young Adu...
Meridian Micro School students joined Meridian Montessori students for a community butterfly release. We look forward to the addition of our adolescent class in the spring 2023 release!
Meridian Micro Farm was featured in this article from U.S. News and World Report.
Some parents see benefits in the modern-day one-room schoolhouse.
According to Civic Garden Center, the benefits of community gardening include community building and direct access to fresh produce. Our inaugural class will prepare and plant the first seeds as an extension of our local community garden. Subsequent growth will be evaluated and plans will adjust as necessary.
Visit Civic Garden Center for more information about community gardens in your Cincinnati neighborhood.
Meridian Micro Farm brings to life Erdkinder in an urban setting and extends the Meridian commitment to meaningful learning in the 21st century. What is Erdkinder? Learn more via the link below.
If you needed to, could you build a home to live in? Could you cook a whole, nutritious meal from scratch? Could you sew clothing for your family if department stores disappeared? If there was a local or national disaster, could your community feed itself and access clean water or are they dependent...
"Endless numbers of movies and television sitcoms showcase large public middle and high schools. Children take for granted that this is the way things are supposed to be. All through elementary school, many children long for the day when they can make the rite of passage and go to a big school. In affluent communities, the modern secondary level campus is shiny and new, and costs enough to keep property tax rates higher than ever."
Why Small Schools Work – Good Things Come in Small Packages by Tim Seldin | Mixed Ages, Montessori Administrators, Montessori Charter Schools, Montessori Education, The International Montessori Council A hundred years ago most schools were very small in comparison with the large elementary schools...
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