Where do the three r's fit in here?

There was an article in the paper recently about Robert E. Lee Elementary School in Dallas. The second-graders there are learning how to do a garden. On a school day, they were outside digging, raking, and planting.

Now I'm all for the kids learning about gardening. I think that's wonderful. But shouldn't this be an extra-curricular activity? Especially given the fact that so many of our children graduate high school with only rudimentary literacy skills. One parent said, "The kids are happy, and it's great to see them having fun outside." Maybe so, but is that why we send them to school? Let's teach them to read, write, and as Jethro Bodine used to say, cipher, before we send them out to play in the garden.

"The Growing Season." The Dallas Morning News; March 4, 2010; p. 1A.