Oak Hill, WV (WOAY) – Coda Mountain Academy has partnered with Honeysuckle Hill Nature Discovery Center in Oak Hill for Coda Grow, a free after-school program built around hands-on learning in nature. This fall, a group of Fayette County students is getting to explore the center, a former plant nursery on Terry Avenue that now winds through numerous gardens, a bamboo maze, a pond, and exhibits tucked into every corner.
“Honeysuckle Hill is kind of a cross between a nature center and a botanical gardens,” said Terri Johnson, executive director of the Honeysuckle Hill Nature Discovery Center. “And we have an emphasis, strong emphasis on science and exploring. And you might not think that there’s a lot to discover, but we discover something every day here.”
Coda Mountain Academy already teaches music, art and robotics after school across Fayette County. Two years ago, it partnered with Honeysuckle Hill to get students learning outside.
“We’ve been really happy with our partnership with Coda Grow and we believe it’s a great program,” said Matt Evans, executive director of Coda Mountain Academy. “We love to see the kids get outside, they get to take field trips to Honeysuckle Hill and really get some hands on learning experience with that.”
Coda Grow combines classroom education with trips out to the gardens. Both groups saw the partnership as a natural fit, agreeing on what many local kids were missing.
“We saw a need for children to be outside, and we know that there’s proof that time spent in nature improves our well-being,” Johnson said.
Out at the center, the learning happens in every direction, from roots to dig into and compost to turn, to wildlife and insects to spot along the way. Coda says the program is available to kids throughout Fayette County.
“We have two sites right now. We have Oak Hill Middle School and Fayetteville, pre-K through eight. The Grow program takes place at Fayetteville, pre-K through eight,” Evans said. “But honestly, students anywhere in the county are allowed to participate in our programs, including private school students and homeschool students.”
“The opportunities here are endless because of all the nature around us,” said Johnson. “Here we are in wild and wonderful West Virginia, and we don’t always appreciate it, so we want to teach kids how to go into their own backyards and discover what’s there.”
Coda Grow is free, and Coda Mountain Academy says students from any school can sign up. Registration for this program and others is available at codamountain.com/enroll.
Newswatch reporter Caleb Pearl will also appear as a guest speaker at Coda’s after-school program at Fayetteville PK-8 at 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 21, speaking with students about news broadcasting.
