Parent Teacher Magazine Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools May 2014 | Page 13

Nature Tales and Garden Buds
Volunteer shares her love of literacy and gardening

CMS Board of Education names six schools

Fusing literacy and nature can spark a student’s curiosity, imagination and interest
in books and the environment. It has inspired Carla Vitez, a Winterfield Elementary
volunteer, to create Nature Tales, a literacy-based environmental education program.
First-graders read three books about nature and then walk in the Evergreen Nature
Preserve, a 77-acre urban forest adjacent to the school.
“It’s a great way for students to get excited abo