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Wlaf1450
By Charlotte Underwood
LAFOLLETTE, TN (WLAF) – Students at Valley View Elementary School are getting a chance to learn about raising chickens in their brand new chicken coop.
Campbell County School Board member Jeffrey Miller spearheaded the project after seeing that Jacksboro Elementary had implemented a chicken coop at their school.
He said with Valley View’s location and the area’s history in farming, he felt the project was a perfect fit. He began pursuing the idea a year ago when he approached the local Tractor Supply about donating a chicken coop. This February Tractor Supply donated the coop to Miller, who then donated it to Valley View.
The teachers got together and came up with the name Coop-A-Cobana.
The local Co-Op donated the feeding and watering dispensers and two bags of feed, while Byrge Screen Printing donated the sign.
The chickens currently living in Coop-A-Cobana were raised on Miller’s nearby farm and donated by him. They are named Salt and Pepper. Once they are grown, they will be sold as part of an ongoing fundraiser in which students in the science classes will incubate eggs to hatch and raise in the coop.
Valley View Principal Jason Dotson said he felt Coop-A-Cabana was going to be an exciting educational motivator for the students.
“We want to motivate them to take an interest in animal science and how things grow. This project will align with our community traditions associated with farming to help students in our school who may not live on a farm, better understand the what’s, how’s, and whys of growing chickens and how they interact within their environment,” Dotson said.
The coop is located outside the breezeway to the gym, allowing all students to observe the coop and chickens. “It’s a great education tool and also a good way for the kids to learn about the responsibility of caring for an animal,” Miller said. He also said he wants Valley View to stand out as a place parents want to send their kids to school, as well as a place students want to attend.
“It’s a win-win. It’s a great interactive educational project for the kids, there’s the science aspect and it’s a just a lot of fun for them to learn about,” Miller said. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 04/09/2021-6AM-PHOTOS COURTESY OF JEFFREY MILLER)