VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - It's the last day of school for thousands of students across Hampton Roads, and students at one Virginia Beach elementary school are reflecting on lessons learned outside the classroom thanks to a local star.
That last day of school energy was abundant at an awards program at Seatack Elementary School, where kids in the school's garden club were among those who were honored.
The club got a huge boost about a month and a half ago. The school's community garden was just getting started when the plants and veggies were going in - all courtesy of community and business donations through Pharrell's Something in the Water festival.
And then a few days later, the star himself showed up to dedicate the garden.
Now, the garden is flourishing.
Their community garden is really taking off. Kids are growing all kinds of things in there: Cucumbers, tomatoes and some impressive-looking squash.
Of course, the students were proud of all their hard work.
"I'm just...I don't know... just proud like seeing all of it come to life and knowing that I helped start it."
And as these 5th graders say goodbye as they move on to middle school, they reflect on what they've learned.
"Self-confidence is one thing, and then another thing is just working with everyone."
And they are quick to tell you this is more than just learning about gardening. They say it helps them with their schoolwork.
"You'd be surprised how much gardening does tie into learning, 'cause you can come out here and learn about parts of a plant."
Plus, the kids say the gardening helps them to be a better student.
"School can be stressful. There's testing, there's lots of things going on inside a building. When you go outside of a building, beyond the walls, it gets you a chance to breathe. It gets you a chance to reconnect with nature."
The students say in addition to helping them become better students, they enjoyed bring home veggies from the garden.
