For a group of students at Los Obispos Middle School, coming back to school from winter break meant something very special — checking on the plants they proudly care for at the front of their school.

These Wildcats are part of Ms. Martha Treviño’s Functional Life Skills (FLS) class. Over the past year, they’ve taken on the responsibility of maintaining three large cantera planters that welcome everyone who walks onto campus. The project has grown into something beautiful.

“They were so excited to go back and tend to their plants after the break,” said Principal Olga Cantu. “Our beautification project started last year when we purchased three beautiful cantera planters for the front of the school.”

Cantu explained how the class and its teachers became the guardians of the planters. “We change those plants based on the season—poinsettias in December, spring flowers in the spring. We schedule the students to water the plants, and they go and take care of them and beautify the front of the school.”

Those planters have become a point of pride for the campus. “These planters give a beautiful presence to the front of the school and to our campus,” Cantu added.

For Ms. Treviño, the project began with a simple question and a lot of trust. “We noticed the planters that Ms. Cantu had purchased for the school, and I asked her, ‘Would you mind if my students help me care for the plants?’” Treviño said. “She was gracious and supportive enough to purchase the plants, and our students really enjoy watering and taking care of them.”

After two weeks away, the students noticed right away that the plants needed attention. “They came in and said, ‘Teacher, we have to take care of the plants,’” Treviño recalled. “I told them, ‘I know — we need to cut the dead leaves off, and they will come back.’”

Beyond beautifying the campus, the project serves as a powerful learning experience. Students explore science concepts like the life cycle of plants while also developing responsibility and confidence. “They see videos about plants, they can feel the seed they planted, and then they water it,” Treviño said. “So they know how much care it takes to grow and maintain plants.”

Most importantly, the lessons go deeper than soil and sunlight. “One of the things that we try to instill in our students is that everybody can do anything that they want,” Treviño shared. “Sometimes they’ve been told, ‘No, you can’t do that.’ But with our plants, they can see that every plant has a season and a place where it belongs and where it blooms.”

Just like the flowers they nurture, these students are blooming too—with love, patience, and the chance to shine. And thanks to their hard work, Los Obispos Middle School is not only more beautiful, but filled with a powerful reminder of what growth truly looks like.

Way to go, Wildcats.