Woolly School Garden - Garden Path Curriculum

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garden path curriculum A Guide for Teachers of Pre-K Through Eighth Grade Student Gardeners

By Judy Rex and Cathy Janssen

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

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welcome to the woolly pocket garden path curriculum This Pre-K through 8th grade curriculum is designed to help you create your own garden program by offering a variety of options for interactive learning experiences aligned with the National Research Council (NRC) Science Standards Framework as well as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Recent studies show that, unfortunately, students’ science knowledge is far greater than their science understanding and reasoning. By participating in the Woolly Pocket School Garden program, you and your students will come away with not only knowledge, but more importantly, a deeper understanding and appreciation for sustainable organic gardening. Sustainable agriculture involves food production methods that are healthy, do not harm the environment, respect workers, treat animals humanely, provide fair wages to farmers, and support farming communities. This focus on going “green” will positively impact both your health and the world you live in. After participating in the Woolly Pocket Garden Path lessons, your students will understand that: • • • •

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Basic needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy. Living things change as they progress through their life cycle. Eating plants from local growers promotes a healthy lifestyle and environment. Reflecting on and evaluating your experiences builds collegiality, informs decisions and provides opportunities for further exploration and study.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


The Garden Path plans are presented as a guide for a garden journey rather than a prescriptive set of things you must do. Each Garden Path begins with introductory activities, followed by ongoing learning experiences that build towards a culminating wrap-up. This flexibility will allow you to incorporate objectives from all content areas while planning in response to the needs of your own learning community. In addition, your Woolly Pocket Garden will provide opportunities to integrate a life science curriculum at your grade level(s) by using your garden as a working laboratory. The key components of this curriculum include: 1) Key Vocabulary, 2) Teacher Resources, 3) Garden Books 4) Garden Path (core learning experiences), and 5) Off the Beaten Path (supplemental and enriching learning activities)

garden paths There are Garden Paths for each grade level configuration (PreK-K*, 1-2, 3-5 and 6-8) organized by sub-topics: Planning and Creating Investigating and Observing Harvesting and Consuming Reflecting and Evaluating We highly recommend that you use the Garden Path activities as the core of your Woolly Pocket lessons because they provide the essential components for an optimal gardening experience. We also encourage you to peruse the Garden Paths of other grade levels to gather additional ideas and make connections. You will notice that there is purposeful repetition across grade levels in the Garden Path and Off the Beaten Path suggested activities. The magic of gardening is that no two planting or harvesting experiences are the same, and there will never be exactly the same results from subsequent gardening adventures. There is always more to discover! The cycle of planting, observing and consuming will be approached from different perspectives, depending on the readiness and experience of the students, as well as the planting location and time of year. For example, a spring garden differs from a fall garden in many ways, as do visits to Farmer’s Markets in different seasons. Students who have had previous gardening experiences will build on them, make connections and grow as experts. It’s all part of the wonder! The Garden Path lessons may be used in any order and are designed to take anywhere from a week to a month or more, based on the needs and interests of your classroom. You may also choose to use Garden Path lessons simultaneously. For example, you might be Harvesting and Consuming while still Investigating and Observing. Within each Garden Path you will find key objectives (which include big understandings), NRC practices, CCSS connections, and Essential Questions (EQs) that get to the heart of what students should know and be able to do in order to demonstrate their understanding. The EQs drive daily activities and, when answered by the students, become an assessment of learning. Encourage your students to add EQs as you head down the Garden Path! *For PreK-K, the sub-topics are combined into just two Garden Paths: Planning and Creating and Growing and Consuming. The emphasis for very young children should be primarily on discovery, wonder and play in the garden. Have grand conversations, ask questions and, above all, enjoy! These initial experiential garden adventures will build a foundation of understanding and appreciation for gardening that will prepare students for more formal lessons in later years. We encourage PreK-K teachers to investigate the other grade level Garden Paths for additional opportunities that might be adapted to PreK-K classrooms.

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OFF THE BEATEN PATH Off the Beaten Path are side trips that provide numerous opportunities for you to expand upon the essentials, and may be used as you see fit. These suggested activities include science experiments, enrichment opportunities, cross窶田urricular explorations and suggestions for collaborating with other classrooms. Off the Beaten Path activities are also aligned with the NRC Framework and the CCSS, and when used together with the Garden Paths, address all the standards. Hopefully, you will be inspired to add more ideas of your own.

NRC FRAMEWORK FOR SCIENCE The practices espoused for all grade levels in the NRC Science Framework include: 1. Asking questions 2. Developing and using models 3. Planning and carrying out investigations 4. Analyzing and interpreting data 5. Using mathematics and computational thinking 6. Constructing explanations 7. Engaging in argument from evidence 8. Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information The expectation is that each of these practices is a part of every grade level in a PreK-12 science curriculum, with mastery occurring in grade 12. Together, the Garden Path and Off the Beaten Path lessons regularly incorporate all of the NRC practices. For a more complete explanation of the NRC Science Framework, please use this link. (www7.nationalacademies.org/bose/Standards_Framework_Homepage.html)

COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS (CCSS) The key points accomplished through use of the Woolly Pocket Garden Curriculum are as follows: READING: Through reading a diverse array of classic and contemporary literature, as well as challenging informational texts on a range of subjects, students are expected to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives. WRITING: Research (both short, focused projects - such as those commonly required in the workplace - and longer term, in depth research) is emphasized throughout the standards, but most prominently in the writing strand since a written analysis and presentation of findings are so often critical. SPEAKING AND LISTENING: An important focus of the speaking and listening standards is academic discussion in one-on-one, small group, and whole class settings. Formal presentations are one important way that such talk occurs, but so is the more informal discussion that takes place as students collaborate to answer questions, build understanding, and solve problems. LANGUAGE: The standards expect that students will grow their vocabularies through a mix of conversation, direct instruction, and reading. The standards will help students determine word meanings, appreciate the nuances of words, and steadily expand their repertoire of words and phrases. MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGY: Just as media and technology are integrated in school and life in the twenty-first century, skills related to media use (both critical analysis and production of media) are integrated throughout the standards.

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Woolly School Garden Curriculum


Utilizing Off the Beaten Path activities along with the core Garden Path lessons will provide a wide variety of opportunities for reading, thinking, writing and conversing about the garden, which fulfills the CCSS. Please use the link (www.corestandards.org) to identify the specific standards at your grade level that are integrated into the garden curriculum.

EQUIPMENT You will receive Pockets, seeds and compost tea with your Woolly School Garden. Additionally, you will need enough basic garden equipment (tools such as trowels, spades, gardening gloves, watering cans, soil testers, etc.) to give all children the opportunity to work in the garden. You might consider creating several garden buckets, each filled with the necessary materials that can be used by small groups.

TIME AND PLANNING A critical consideration as you begin your garden journey is finding the time to devote to gardening activities. Consider how much time you will commit to on a daily/weekly basis. Is your intent primarily social, academic or both? Using some of the Off the Beaten Path opportunities along with the Garden Path activities provides for integration of curriculum while addressing all of the standards. Our hope is that your garden will become an integral part of your classroom and school community. The primary goal of the Woolly Pocket Garden Curriculum is to encourage you and your students to have fun with plants.

10 TIPS ON GARDENING WITH KIDS Rory Klick developed Ten Tips on Gardening with Kids at (http://communitygarden.org/learn/best-practices10-tips-series.php), an for an inspiring and very full list of the benefits of a kid-based, fun garden experience where dirt and crawly-critters are cool. This list of tips is crucial to a successful school garden experience. Most of all, we hope that you and your students have many moments of wonder and discovery in the garden! 1. Kid gardens must be kid-based. This means that kids help generate the ideas for what will be there, help with construction and planting, and are responsible for maintenance. Grown-up’s need to facilitate and show how, but not do everything. Focus on the process of involving them, and they will then take ownership. 2. Develop the garden to be appropriate for the site and regional conditions. Involve the kids in the site analysis process so they understand how important the light, soil, drainage and other environmental factors are to having a garden. Develop the garden so the features and plant choices are adapted to local conditions, so you are not “working against nature.” 3. Focus on functional garden design, not how it will look. Start the design process by determining what the children want to be doing and learning in the garden. Base the features on the practical functions they will serve, and don’t worry too much about aesthetics. Gardens that serve as hands-on learning laboratories for kids will be beautiful because they are well-used and well-loved spaces. Also remember that the children’s sense of what is pretty may not be yours; that’s ok because the garden is their space. 4. Be comfortable with dirt. All kids are washable, so as long as parents have been notified about the gardening activity in advance and haven’t sent them in fancy clothing, let them get dirty. If mud is a concern once the kids are going back inside the building, try plastic grocery sacks over their shoes, or set up and hand-washing and shoe-scraping station before they go back inside. 5. Bugs and crawly critters are cool. Children aren’t inherently afraid of things that crawl and creep. They learn that these things are bad or scary or icky from adults. When you pass on an aversion to something because

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of how it looks, that’s called “prejudice.” Worms, caterpillars, grubs, insects, spiders and all sorts of wondrous creatures are out in your garden as part of the ecosystem. Please see them as integral parts of the system, and the kids will be amazed and curious, not afraid. Check out Worms Eat My Garbage and other great teaching resources on garden critters. 6. No chemicals. Given that you are gardening with children, this really should not need any explanation. Also in urban areas, it is advisable to have a basic soil assessment for lead and other urban contaminants to make sure your site is safe for children before the garden is developed. 7. Grow some things to eat. Children are much more willing to try and consume fresh fruits and vegetables that they have grown. In fact, they likely will try things they never have eaten before because they have tended the plants through harvest. Since 60% of kids today don’t eat enough fruits and veggies, learn more through the There’s a Rainbow on My Plate from the USDA and other kids nutrition resources. Have a harvest celebration and encourage the kids to share their bounty with others, whether informally or through national programs like “Plant a Row.” 8. Reinforce the lessons from the garden while indoors. Prepare the kids for their gardening experience by asking questions like, “What will we see today?” or “How much do you think things have grown since last week?” Engage kids in keeping journals and/or scrapbooks of their garden to monitor its progress through the season and over the years. If working with a school garden, integrate the garden across disciplines beyond science. 9. Keep it fun. Have enough equipment, whether trowels or watering cans, to allow small teams of 4-8 kids to work together on a task. Many children do better in small group situations, and it’s also easier to guide the kids when each team has a specific assignment. Try partnering older (grades 5-8 or HS) and younger children to provide younger kids with a helper, and help older children be more responsible. Have a plan for how the kids’ time in the garden will be organized so they aren’t left idle for long, but also be open to the “teachable moments” that come along. 10. Gardening is a powerful experience for children. Children have fewer and fewer chances to interact with the natural world, and the connection to nature is important for their development. Children who develop regard and concern for the natural world come to be good stewards of the land and its resources. Being responsible for tending a garden also fosters their sense of “nurturing” and helps them learn to care for other living things. Kids don’t often hear much positive feedback from adults, and creating and tending a garden also empowers kids because they hear that they have “done a good job” from other adults.

Happy Gardening from our Woolly Pocket Family!

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Woolly School Garden Curriculum


Table of Contents Key Vocabulary

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Teacher Resources

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Garden Books

10 – 17

Garden Path : Planning & Creating

18 – 35

Grades: PreK — Kindergarten

18 – 20

Grades: 1—2

21 – 24

Grades: 3—5

25 – 29

Grades: 6—8

30 – 35

Garden Path : Investigating & Observing

36 – 46

Grades: 1—2

36 – 38

Grades: 3—5

39 – 42

Grades: 6—8

43 – 46

Garden Path : Harvesting & Consuming

47 – 58

Grades: PreK — Kindergarten

47 – 49

Grades: 1—2

50 – 52

Grades: 3—5

53 – 55

Grades: 6—8

56 – 58

Garden Path : Reflecting & Evaluating

59 – 67

Grades: 1—2

59 – 61

Grades: 3—5

62 – 64

Grades: 6—8

65 – 67

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Table of Contents

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Key Vocabulary This is a suggested list of important words that connect with the activities found in the Garden Path and Off the Beaten Path opportunities. Please use the words that are appropriate for your grade level, and feel free to add to our list with the help of your students.

adaptations agricultutre biodiversity climate compost decomposers ecosystems edible environment flower fruits green harvest healthy herbs leaves life cycle maturation non-edible / inedible nutrients nutrition organic

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Vocabulary

pests pesticides photosynthesis pollination produce producers stem systems plant plant products reproduction root seed soil sustainable variation vegetables water conservation whole foods

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


Teacher Resources These are a few of the many websites and materials that will support your gardening adventures. The books listed below can be adapted for use at any grade level and also provide an opportunity for cross grade level collaboration. We encourage you and your students to search for other websites and materials that will best fit your needs. Be sure to check your local and school libraries and remember to look for local resources/experts. To create a home/school connection, involve parents in your search for gardening materials (including recipes). WEBSITES The Edible Schoolyard (www.edibleschoolyard.org) was spearheaded by Alice Waters as a one-acre garden and kitchen classroom at Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School in Berkeley, California, and now has a network of affiliate schools. Sustainable Table (www.sustainabletable.org) offers a variety of excellent resources on local, sustainable, and community-based food, including special features, lesson ideas and videos for teachers and students. National Gardening Association (www.garden.org) provides information and inspiration on gardening with answers to questions about lawns, landscapes, trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, vegetables, herbs and flowers. USDA’s Choose My Plate (www. choosemyplate.gov) contains nutritional information in kid-friendly language and illustrations as well as resources for educators. Healthy Kids Plate (www.healthykidsplate.com) This commercial site has sample Healthy Plate meals that are consistent with USDA My Plate recommendations. It also has nutritious recipes for each portion of the plate. Chefs Move to Schools (www.letsmove.gov/chefs-move-schools) contains links to networks for chefs and educators in many cities across the country as well as resources for planting gardens and ideas for cooking with garden produce. Let's Move (www.letsmove.gov) promotes physical activity and good nutrition in order to combat obesity. Pesticide Action network (www.panna.org) promotes the elimination of dangerous pesticides and offers solutions that protect people and the environment. Formulas for non-chemical pesticides at (www.panna.org/ your-health/home-pets-garden#quickguide). Adolescent Literacy (www.adlit.org) explores field journals with students in grades 4 – 12. Kids Gardening (www.kidsgardening.org) provides gardening news and links to resources, connect to youth garden advocates, activities, articles. Gardening for Kids (www.gardening-for-kids.blogspot.com) provides gardening information about flowers, plant combinations and science information for kids. The Garden Wizard (www.schoolgardenwizard.org) provides advice for building and using a garden, learning in the garden activities, and Wizard Direct answers your gardening questions. Seed Savers Exchange (www.seedsavers.org) is an organization that distributes heirloom seeds. Check out their seed catalogue. Organic Gardening in the UK (www.gardenorganic.org.uk) provides links for student gardeners and an opportunity to compare gardening in another country. Adolescent Literacy (www.adlit.org) explores field journals with students in grades 4 – 12.

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Teacher Resources

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Garden Books

American Grown: The Story of the White House Kitchen Garden and Gardens Across America, Michelle Obama, Crown Publishing, ISBN 0307956024 In April 2009, First Lady Michelle Obama planted a kitchen garden on the White House’s South Lawn. As fresh vegetables, fruit, and herbs sprouted from the ground, this White House Kitchen Garden inspired a new conversation all across the country about the food we feed our families and the impact it has on the health and well-being of our children. Now, in her first-ever book, American Grown, Mrs. Obama invites you inside the White House Kitchen Garden and shares its inspiring story, from the first planting to the latest harvest. Hear about her worries as a novice gardener – would the new plants even grow? Learn about her struggles and her joys as lettuce, corn, tomatoes, collards and kale, sweet potatoes and rhubarb flourished in the freshly tilled soil. Get an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at every season of the garden’s growth, with striking original photographs that bring its story to life. Try the unique recipes created by White House chefs and made with ingredients just picked from the White House garden. And learn from the White House Garden team about how you can help plant your own backyard, school or community garden.

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Garden Books

And the Good Brown Earth, Kathy Henderson, Candlewick Press, ISBN: 0763638412 Author and illustrator Kathy Henderson’s mixed media artwork adds humor and charm to this picture book for three- to six-year-olds. Joe and Gram plant and cultivate a garden. Gram works methodically while Joe explores and learns, each helped by “the good brown earth.” They dig in the fall, plan in the winter, plant in the spring, weed and water in summer, and gather produce and feast in late summer. The repetition in the text adds to the book’s appeal.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle; A Year of Food Life, Barbara Kingsolver, Harper Collins, ISBN: 0060852566 Author Barbara Kingsolver and her family abandoned the industrial-food pipeline to live a rural life, vowing that, for one year, they’d only buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it. Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is an enthralling narrative that will open your eyes in a hundred new ways to an old truth: You are what you eat.

And Then It’s Spring, Julie Fogliano, Roaring Book Press, ISBN: 1596436244 First time author Julie Fogliano and Erin E. Stesd, a Caldecott Medal winner for picture book illustration, have collaborated to create an excellent picture book for children ages 4 and up. And Then It’s Spring is the story of a little boy eager for winter to be over and for the brown landscape to turn green again. This is a story children will want to hear again and again. Children will also enjoy the detailed illustrations, finding something new every time they look at them.

The Beeman, Laurie Krebs, National Geographic Society, ISBN: 0792272242 Because the story is told in rhyme, even the youngest child’s attention will be easily captured. Children will enjoy hearing the story read aloud again and again, younger children because of the rhythm and older children because of the fascinating facts in it. Most young children think honey comes from the grocery store. They are surprised and delighted to learn the truth. Whether you are reading this book to one child or a group, I recommend following the reading with a snack of muffins and honey just like the beekeeper’s family enjoyed.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


Brother Eagle, Sister Sky, Susan Jeffers, Perfection Learning, ISBN: 0756910518 How can you buy the sky? How can you own the rain and the wind?” So begin the moving words attributed to a great American Indian chief--Chief Seattle--over 100 years ago. They are words that eloquently capture the central belief of Native Americans: that this earth and every creature on it is sacred. It is this belief that inspired Susan Jeffers’ extraordinary full-color paintings.

The Carrot Seed, Ruth Kraus, Harper Collins, ISBN: 006023501 Ruth Kraus’s classic little picture book for children 2 to 5 is a delight. The spare and simple line drawings are by Crockett Johnson, well-known for Harold and the Purple Crayon. A little boy plants a carrot seed. Despite being told by his entire family that the seed won’t grow, the boy perseveres. Every day, he carefully weeds and waters the area where he planted the seed. A plant grows, and one day, the boy is rewarded with a big orange carrot.

Compost Stew, Mary McKenna Siddals, Tricycle Press, ISBN: 1582463166 From eggshells to wiggly worms, this delightful recipe in bouncy verse features items—some familiar and some not so—that are fit for the home compost bin and will nourish Mother Earth. Vibrant collage illustrations use recycled and found materials to further a timely message. And to keep young environmental chefs fully informed about composting do’s and don’ts, there’s a note in the back about what’s not fit for the bin.

Eating the Alphabet, Lois Ehlert, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, ISBN: 0152244361

Butterfly Garden, Margaret McNamara, Simon Spotlight: ISBN: 1442436435 When a package arrives on Mrs. Connor’s desk, everyone is eager to find out what’s in it. Mrs. Connor hints that it’s something that changes from one thing to another. The children soon discover that it’s not a monster or a superhero, but a jar with five caterpillars. The class is going to learn about the life cycle of butterflies! They patiently watch as the caterpillars eat and eat and grow and grow, become chrysalises, and then emerge as beautiful butterflies. And all the children agree that butterflies are “even better than a superhero.”

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

The Children’s Kitchen Garden: A Book of Gardening, Cooking, and Learning, Georgeanne Brennan, Ten Speed Press, ISBN: 0898158731 At the East Bay French-American School in Berkeley, California, the students and teachers grow a garden of delicious herbs and vegetables. Their curriculum includes tasting, cooking, and eating the harvest to establish a connection between the earth and daily life. This well-put-together book teaches even gardening novices how to do it, too. The book features colorful line drawings, photographs of the kids in action, delicious recipes that even five-year-olds can help prepare, and great little sidebars on subjects as diverse as “Composting,” “How Flowers Drink,” and how to hold a “First Sprout Party.

While teaching upper and lowercase letters to preschoolers, Ehlert introduces fruits and vegetables from around the world. A glossary at the end provides interesting facts about each food. It’s an alphabetical tour of the world of fruits and vegetables, from apricot and artichoke to yam and zucchini.

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From Seed to Plant, Gail Gibbons, Holiday House, ISBN: 0823410255

Fables from the Garden, Lelise Ann Hayashi, Kolowalu Books, ISBN: 0824820367 1999 Ka Palapala Pookela Awards for Excellence in Illustrative Books, and Excellence in Children’s Books Children will delight in this charming collection of stories featuring plants and animals often seen in Hawaii’s gardens. A lone orchid finds friendship among roses; a kind albatross teaches a young frog about the joy of discovery; two greedy mynahs learn about sharing; a lazy blue ginger is encouraged to blossom. As a good fable should, each of these wondrous tales offers a valuable lesson at the end -- but it’s one that goes down with a smile. Here are ten stories from a Hawaiian garden that will entertain and guide young and old, all illustrated in brilliant watercolors. Recommended for ages 4 and up.

Flower Garden, Eve Bunting, Sandpiper, ISBN: 015203720

A simple introduction to how plants reproduce, discussing pollination, seed dispersal, and growth from seed to plant. The section on pollination, covered in detail in the illustrations, is very clear. A simple project--how to grow a bean plant-is included. A final page gives odd and unusual facts.

Garbage Helps Our Garden Grow: A Compost Story, Linda Glaser, Millbrook Press, ISBN: 0761349112 What is that garbage doing next to the garden? It’s not garbage. It’s compost! Amazing things happen inside a compost bin. In go banana peels, grass clippings, and even an old jack-o’-lantern. Out comes compost. The compost goes into the garden to make the soil rich for new plants. Compost is good for the earth. Composting also helps us make less garbage. In this book, you can watch as one family makes compost for their garden and also learn how to start your very own compost bin.

The Garden of Happiness, Erika Tamar, Harcourt Brace, ISBN: 0152305823 Barbara Lambase’s oil paintings, alive with the rich color and movement of city life in a diverse neighborhood, add drama to Erika Tamar’s story of a little girl named Marisol and a new community garden. When Marisol plants a seed she’s found, it grows into a giant sunflower, to her neighbor’s delight. Her sadness when the sunflower dies in the fall is forgotten when Marisol sees the beautiful mural of sunflowers that teen artists have created.

Garden Wigglers: Earthworms in Your Backyard, Nancy Loewen, Picture Window Books, ISBN: 1404817573 Describes the physical characteristics, life cycle, and behavior of earthworms. Includes anatomy diagram and activity.

It’s nice to see a book about how a family living in a city apartment creates a garden. A little girl and her father go to the grocery store and buy flowering plants. Then, they take the bus back to their city apartment. There they plant a window box as a birthday present for her mother. Eve Bunting’s charming story is told in rhyme and illustrated with lovely realistic paintings by Kathryn Hewitt.

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The Gardener, Sarah Stewart, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, ISBN: 0374325176 During the Depression, young Lydia is sent to the city to stay with her Uncle Jim, a reserved, somber man, “until things get better.” She brings her love of gardens with her. The text, in the form of Lydia’s letters home, and the double-page artwork by David Small joyously illustrate how Lydia creates gardens that transform both the neighborhood and her relationship with Uncle Jim. This Caldecott Honor Book is recommended for six- to 10-year-olds.

Good Enough to Eat, Lizzy Rockwell, HarperCollins, ISBN: 0060274344 Jam-packed with fascinating facts such as the ones above, Good Enough to Eat is uniquely designed to satisfy kids’ love of food, and their curiosity about how their bodies work. This book offers all of the basics found in an adult nutrition guide in a format designed specifically for kids. Lizzy Rockwell has filled Good Enough to Eat with funny speech bubbles, detailed illustrations, and an engaging cast of children who munch their way across the pages while explaining everything from why your body needs protein to the food pyramid and how to use it. You’ll even find hands-on experiments that test food for fat and reveal the differences between starch and sweet carbohydrates, and recipes using the nutritious foods that children need in their daily diet.

Grow Your Own Pizza: Gardening Plans and Recipes for Kids, Constance Hardesty, Fulcrum Publishing, ISBN: 555913984 Outlined with clarity and simplicity, the fundamentals of gardening are covered in this wonderful book, from composting and mulching; planting and harvesting; to maintenance and tackling garden pests. Safety tips for the garden and kitchen are included, as well as a Green Thumb Guide and glossary. So grow wild!

Growing Vegetable Soup, Lois Ehlert, Sandpiper, ISBN: 0152325800 Gardening Wizardry for Kids, L. Patricia Kite, Barron’s Educational Series, ISBN: 0812013177 Kids learn about plants through more than 300 experiments and projects that use apple seeds, beans, potatoes, herbs -- virtually everything that grows! Whether growing space is as small as a windowsill, or as big as a backyard, children understand plant life through actual involvement. Glossary, reading list, and color illustrations.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

A Green, Green Garden, Mercer Mayer, Harper Collins, ISBN: 0060835621 Little Critter is going green! Little Critter® learns that planting his own garden is a lot of fun and a lot of work. But the result—a green, green garden—is something he can cherish and enjoy.

Author and illustrator Lois Ehlert’s cut-paper collages are bold and colorful. The story of a father and child’s vegetable garden project is told in rhyme. While the text of the story is brief, each of the plants, seeds, and gardening tools illustrated is labeled, making this a book that’s fun to read aloud and then read through again identifying everything. The story begins with the planting of seeds and sprouts and ends with delicious vegetable soup.

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I Will Never Eat a Tomato, Lauren Child, Candlewick Press, ISBN: 0763621803 Lola is a fussy eater. A very fussy eater. She won’t eat her carrots (until her brother Charlie reveals that they’re orange twiglets from Jupiter). She won’t eat her mashed potatoes (until Charlie explains that they’re cloud fluff from the pointiest peak of Mount Fuji). There are many things Lola won’t eat, including - and especially - tomatoes. Or will she? Two endearing siblings star in a witty story about the triumph of imagination over proclivity.

Just a Dream, Chris Van Allsburg, Houghton Mifflin, ISBN; 0395533082 Walter is a litterbug who does not appreciate the beauty of nature, or understand his role in keeping the planet healthy...until a fantastic journey shows him the tragic fate that could befall Earth if humans like him are not more careful. Are Walter’s actions really helping his planet along the road to destruction, or is it all just a dream?

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Garden Books

Kids Can Compost, Wen-Chia-Tsai Parker, Create Space, ISBN: 1451591842

Kids in the Garden, Elizabeth McCorquodale, Blackdog Publishing, ISBN: 1906155926

A fun and colorful “how-to” picture book that teaches children about composting. Children love to get work in the garden and help in the kitchen. Composting is fun, easy and a great way for kids to help our environment. This book is also a great way for parents to get started on composting. Composting reduces waste, recycles, and creates a natural fertilizer for your garden. Everyone benefits from composting, its a fun activity for the family, and builds a strong and beautiful garden.

A fun and accessible guide for children to use on their own or with adults, Kids in the Garden encourages children to learn about gardening, healthy eating and caring for the environment. Instructions are easy to follow and step-by-step, with bright photography and fun illustrations. Aimed at children aged five upwards with adult supervision, then for older children up to age 11 to complete on their own. This fully illustrated book features more than 50 projects with full instructions on the materials needed, companion plants, saving resources, harvesting seasons, seeds, the water cycle and indoor gardens. There is also a section on wildlife, showing how to encourage animals into your garden, as well as how to make a mini pond, birdhouses, pest patrol, building a wormery, rescuing bees and ladybirds, and much more. Kids in the Garden was awarded the 2011 Gelett Burgess Children’s Book Honor.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


Miss Rumphius, Barbara Cooney, Puffin Books, ISBN: 0140505393

Planting a Rainbow, Lois Ehlert, Sandpiper, ISBN: 0152626107

Would that every child were given such wonderful advice by a grandparent: when you grow up you must do something to make the world more beautiful. This is the 1982 winner of the American Book Award and was the New York Times Best Children’s Book of the Year. It is the story of a young girl who vows to travel and see faraway places and to live beside the sea. But there is one more thing she must do, and the book follows her while she travels, grows older and figures out that something which will make the world more beautiful.

Children four and older, as well as adults, want to go out and plant a rainbow of flowers after enjoying this book by Lois Ehlert. A mother and child “plant a rainbow,” beginning with bulbs in the fall and seeds and seedlings in the spring, and ending with a beautiful garden of flowers in a veritable rainbow of colors. The book’s striking design and Ehlert’s gorgeous cut-paper collages of flowers make this a particularly appealing book.

The Omnivore’s Dilemma for Kids: The Secrets Behind What You Eat, Michael Pollan, Penguin Group, ISBN: 0803735002 The New York Times bestseller that’s changing America’s diet is now perfect for younger readers “What’s for dinner?” seemed like a simple question—until journalist and supermarket detective Michael Pollan delved behind the scenes. From fast food and big organic to small farms and old-fashioned hunting and gathering, this young readers’ adaptation of Pollan’s famous food-chain exploration encourages kids to consider the personal and global health implications of their food choices. In a smart, compelling format with updated facts, plenty of photos, graphs, and visuals, as well as a new afterword and backmatter, The Omnivore’s Dilemma serves up a bold message to the generation that needs it most: It’s time to take charge of our national eating habits—and it starts with you.

The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, Michael Pollan, Penguin Press, ISBN: 1594200823 A national bestseller that has changed the way readers view the ecology of eating, this revolutionary book by award winner Michael Pollan asks the seemingly simple question: What should we have for dinner? Tracing from source to table each of the food chains that sustain us-whether industrial or organic, alternative or processed--he develops a portrait of American way of eating. The result is a sweeping, surprising exploration of the hungers that have shaped our evolution, and of the profound implications our food choices have for the health of our species and the future of our planet.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

One Bean, Anne Rockwell, Bloomsbury Publishing, ISBN: 0802775721 What happens when you plant just one little bean? A fundamental childhood experiment charmingly unfolds in this first science book about planting and observation. A perfect balance of simple narration and cheerful, thoughtful three-dimensional paper sculptures just right for the very young, One Bean carefully and joyfully takes the young observer step-by-step through a plant’s growth cycle, from planting the bean in a paper cup to the tasty results.

Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots, Sharon Lovejoy, Workman Publishing Company, ISBN: 0761110569 Plant a pumpkinseed with a child, and cultivate wonder. This simple act of reconnecting with children with nature is Sharon Lovejoy’s purpose and joy and gift. Author of Sunflower Houses: Garden Discoveries for Children of All Ages and Hollyhock Days: Garden Adventures for the Young at Heart, Sharon Lovejoy is a nationally known garden writer whose books, television specials, and projects at her learning landscape in California have introduced thousands of children to the pleasures of gardening.

Garden Books

15


A Saguaro Moon: A Desert Journal, Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini, Dawn Publishers, ISBN: 971584690368 A young girl explores Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, recording her thoughts, scientific facts, questions, and experiences in a nature journal decorated by her paintings of the native plants and animals. This book is a great way to introduce kids to scientific journals and the importance of close observation.

Sunflower House, Eve Bunting, Voyager Books, ISBN: 0152019529 This picture book by Eve Bunting is sure to inspire three- to eight-year-olds to plant their own sunflower houses. Lovely realistic illustrations in watercolor and colored pencil by Kathryn Hewitt complement the rhyming text. A little boy plants a circle of sunflower seeds in the spring. By summer, the boy has a “sunflower house” where he and his friends enjoy many hours of fun. At the end of the summer, they collect sunflower seeds.

The Vegetables We Eat, Gail Gibbons, Holiday House, ISBN: 0823421538 Who knew there were so many different kinds of vegetables? From glossy red peppers to lush, leafy greens to plump orange pumpkins, vegetables are explored in depth in this fascinating picture book that clearly explains the many vegetable varieties, how they are grown, and why they are so good for us to eat.

Secrets of the Garden: Food Chains and the Food Web in Our Backyard, Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld, Knopf Books for Young Readers, ISBN: 0517709902 Alice’s family plants a vegetable garden each spring, and this budding naturalist reports all she sees about how the plants grow, what insects come to eat the plants, and what birds and animals come to eat the insects. It’s the food chain, right in her own backyard! While Alice’s narrative is simple and engaging, science concepts are presented in more depth in sidebars by a pair of very knowledgeable (and highly amusing) chickens! Noted science writer Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld knows how to layer information to make it accessible to a wide range of readers and useful for educators. And illustrator Priscilla Lamont’s funny, friendly paintings make this a garden everyone will want to explore. Kids will eat up this wonderful book of backyard science—and perhaps they’ll even be inspired to eat their vegetables!

16

Garden Books

The Tiny Seed, Eric Carle, Little Simon, ISBN: 1416979173 Eric Carle’s classic story of the life cycle of a flower is told through the adventures of a tiny seed. This mini-book includes a piece of detachable seed-embedded paper housed on the inside front cover. Readers can plant the entire piece of paper and watch as their very own tiny seeds grow into beautiful wildflowers. It’s a simple description of a flowering plant’s life cycle through the seasons.

Uno’s Garden, Graeme Base, Abrams, Harry N., Inc., ISBN: 0810954731 When Uno arrives in the forest one beautiful day, there are many fascinating and extraordinary animals there to greet him--and one entirely unexceptional Snortlepig. Uno loves the forest so much, he decides to live there. But, in time, a little village grows up around his house. Then a town, then a city . . . and soon Uno realizes that the animals and plants have begun to disappear.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


Waiting for Wings, Lois Ehlert, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, ISBN: 0152026080 Every spring, butterflies emerge and dazzle the world with their vibrant beauty. But where do butterflies come from? How are they born? What do they eat—and how? With a simple, rhyming text and glorious color-drenched collage, Lois Ehlert provides clear answers to these and other questions as she follows the life cycle of four common butterflies, from their beginnings as tiny hidden eggs and hungry caterpillars to their transformation into full-grown butterflies. Complete with butterfly and flower facts and identification tips, as well as a guide to planting a butterfly garden, this butterfly book is like no other.

Weslandia, Paul Fleischman, Candlewick Press, ISBN: 0763600068 Wesley is willing to live responsively to the land, to work locally, to meet his needs from products of his own small landscape. Rather than fighting evil, struggling to right injustices, etc., Wesley completes a revolutionary act simply by allowing the earth to define his reality. Weslandia is perhaps a “boy” story -- the young geek, working alone, forms a civilization, controls the market (he sells the products of the plants), and rewrites the lives of his peers -- but it is a boy story about rebuilding a world from the earth-side up, rather than from the concrete (absolute) on down. Older children and teens may enjoy discussing some of the implications and assumptions of Weslandia, including what it means to listen to the earth, whether it can be fashionable to be aligned with natural patterns, or what it would be like to have a single plant or animal define the majority of a cultural identity.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

The Worm Café: Mid-Scale Vermicomposting of Lunchroom Waste, Binet Payne, Flower Press, ISBN: 0942256115 This manual describes how a teacher and her students developed a system to compost lunchroom waste with worms and save their school $6000 per year. Teachers, decision-makers, and activists in school, small businesses, and community groups will welcome this unique material. This comprehensive how-to manual gives complete steps for: • Conducting school-wide waste audits • Harvesting worm castings • Incorporating lunchroom waste-composting into a recycling program • Determining worm bin size, location, and costs • Setting up worm bins • Providing worm bedding

Worms Eat Our Garbage: Classroom Activities for a Better Environment, Mary Appelhof, Mary Frances Fenton, and Barbara Loss Harris, Flowerfield Enterprises, LLC, ISBN: 0942256050 This curriculum uses over 150 wormrelated classroom or home activities to develop problem-solving and critical-thinking skills in children grades 4-8. Activities integrate science, mathematics, language arts, biology, solid waste issues, ecology, and the environment.

Garden Books

17


GARDEN PATH : PLANNING + CREATING

Grades PreK–Kindergarten Time: Two Weeks – One Month

At this level, the overarching goal is for children to get involved with their garden in a very physical way. They should enjoy planting, digging, watching bugs and worms, observing plants grow, and tasting foods from the garden. Please see Ten Tips on Gardening with Kids, by Rory Klick at http://communitygarden.org/learn/best-practices-10-tips-series.php for a full discussion about the benefits of a kid-based, fun garden experience where dirt and crawly-critters are cool. As the “dirty work” begins, it is essential that all students have access to materials and tools. This is vital to their taking ownership of their garden. It is also important to build a home-school connection so that families share in and support the child’s joy of gardening. Through these rich experiences, children will build a lifelong love for growing plants and an eagerness to investigate further in the garden.

OBJECTIVES

• Students will help plant the garden.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

• How do seeds/plants change as they grow? • What do you notice and wonder about in the garden? • What plant parts can we eat (and not eat)?

BASIC MATERIALS + PREPARATION • Woolly Pocket School Garden Kit and Manual • Seed Packets • Organic soil • Compost tea (prepare according to Manual instructions) • Gardening literature • Time: Ongoing

18

Planning + Creating : Grades PreK — Kindergarten

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Take a field trip to the grocery store, farmer’s market, local garden/farm or botanical garden.

Read aloud a variety of garden books. (see Resource List for some suggestions) Create a classroom library of garden stories and non-fiction books. See Resource List for some suggestions, but add whatever you and your students find in the school and public libraries. Bring in a variety of veggies for a snack. Tip: Provide hummus, yogurt dip or low fat ranch for dipping, if desired. Conversation starters for ongoing discussion: What veggies do you like? Who has had or seen a garden? Discuss as a whole group in a community meeting.

ONGOING EXPERIENCES What do humans need to be healthy and grow? Introduce the idea of “My Plate” (www.choosemyplate.gov) and discuss the importance of eating healthy foods. Show pictures or bring in examples of foods that range from junk food to very nutritious. Sort the items into three categories (not so healthy, okay, healthy). What happens when we eat the not so healthy choices? What happens when we eat the healthy choices? Garden Alert: Be sure that your garden location provides adequate sunlight, a close water source for your chosen watering system, protection from animal predators, such as hungry, leafy-greens-loving bunnies, and easy accessibility for the children. Garden Alert: Use only the seeds appropriate for your climate and planting season. (Optional: Add other seeds from your area that could be planted in the garden.) In pairs or garden teams, students select seed packets to plant in the garden. Come together as a class to share the recommendations and determine what will be planted. Create a garden plan with your students to show what and where it will be planted. For Pockets, we recommend that you assign two student gardeners per Woolly Pocket and plant one type of seed or plant per pocket. Or, create larger garden teams

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Collect and explore various seed catalogues. Create a bulletin board or special place in the classroom to post student questions, drawings, and garden related projects. Draw or cut out pictures of plants we can eat. Do the same for plants that we cannot eat. Which plants should we put in our garden? Create your own healthy plate by drawing or cutting out pictures. What would you choose to put in each portion of the plate? Share and compare with others. Shared writing: Write a letter to parents about your garden plans. Post this to be read at pick-up. Create garden signs that will indicate what has been planted. Popsicle sticks work great! Experiment with sprouting seeds (use a sprouter – a multi-level plastic tray, sponges or paper towels) to better understand what will happen when seeds are planted in the garden. Create a mural or window art to show how the garden looks before planting and what the students think it will look like after the seeds grow. Add to the mural after plants begin to grow and throughout the life cycle. Connect with a garden buddy classroom to share your experiences. This could be a class with or without their own garden. Partnering with a different class of a different grade level provides for mentoring opportunities. This experience can be expanded to reading and drawing/writing in the garden as well. Create a specialty garden: ingredients for making salsa, Italian dishes, Three Sisters Garden – corn, beans, squash. Have a garden party to celebrate successful planting.

Planning + Creating : Grades PreK — Kindergarten

19


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D that are responsible for a specific area or certain number of Pockets. If you are planting Meadows, divide each Meadow into quadrants and have a small group assume responsibility for each quadrant. Garden Alert: However you divide up your Pockets/Meadows, ensure that each student is responsible for some portion of the garden. Students will feel more invested in the garden project if they have their own Pocket or space of which to take care. Also, be aware of the planting instructions on each seed packet, including watering and maintenance needs. WRAP UP Student gardeners measure and place the soil in the Pockets/Meadows. Be sure to pack the soil. Next, they will plant the seeds according to the packet directions. Garden teams might do this one team at a time while other students are involved in other activities (reading garden books, drawing pictures, participating in Off the Beaten Path activities, etc.), or have a whole class planting event by enlisting parent volunteers or older students to help with planting. • • • •

Discuss how the plant needs will be met. Demonstrate the watering system. Predict how long it will take the seeds to grow. Celebrate!

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Planning + Creating : Grades PreK — Kindergarten

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH : PLANNING + CREATING

Grades 1–2 Time: Two Weeks – One Month

At this level, students are actively involved in the planning and maintenance of the garden. They watch the garden change from dirt into a dynamic ecosystem. As they follow plants through the growth cycle from seed to mature plant, they observe first-hand how plants turn water, soil and sunshine into delicious, nutritious food. They notice the interactions of plants and animals and pose questions (wonder) about life in the garden.

objectives

essential questions

• Students will help choose seeds to plant.

• What are the benefits of having your own garden?

• Students will help plant the garden.

• What do plants need in order to grow?

• Students will understand that plants are important

• What plants grow where you live?

• Students will help plan location for garden.

to people and have specific needs.

• Why do people have gardens?

• What plants grow this time of year?

• Students will understand that needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy. • Students will understand that making healthy eating choices makes for healthy bodies.

basic materials + preparation • Woolly Pocket School Garden Kit and Manual

• Seed Baggies: Prepare by carefully opening seed packet across the top and pouring seeds into a baggie. Place the seed packet envelope in the baggie with the seeds and seal tightly. • Organic soil • Compost tea (prepare according to Manual instructions) • Gardening literature, resources

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 1 — 2

21


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Have other garden books and/or gardening resources available for exploration and study.

Activate prior knowledge: Read aloud a related book such as From Seed to Plant, Gail Gibbons (see resource list for other options). Bring in a variety of veggies for a snack. Tip: Provide hummus, yogurt dip or low fat ranch for dipping, if desired. Conversation starters for ongoing discussion: Why are plants important to us? Where do you get the food that you eat? What veggies do you like? Who has had or seen a garden? How do plants help clean our air? Discuss as a whole group in a community circle or in small table groups. Writer’s Workshop: Draw and/or write what you know about plants and/or gardens. What questions do you have? This may be used as a pre-assessment tool. Start a class list of key vocabulary words and phrases as well as questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study. ONGOING EXPERIENCES Bring in a healthy and unhealthy plant to show the class. Together, brainstorm a list of what plants need in order to be healthy and grow. Ask for explanations of how students know what plants need. What do you think happened to the unhealthy plant? How will we keep our garden plants healthy? Introduce the idea of an organic sustainable garden and what it means to be “green.” What do humans need to be healthy and grow? Introduce the idea of “My Plate” and discuss the importance of eating healthy foods. Show pictures or bring in examples of foods that range from junk food to very nutritious. Sort the items into three categories (healthy, okay, not so healthy). What happens when we eat the not so healthy choices? What happens when we make healthy choices? Why is locally grown produce a healthy choice? • Take a walk around your school to scout out a good garden location that will meet the needs of the plants. If that decision has already been made, com-

22

Planning + Creating : Grades 1 — 2

Take a field trip to the grocery store, farmer’s market, local garden/farm, or botanical garden. Ask questions about where the vegetables come from and how they get there. Does this change during different seasons? Write a letter to a local nursery or gardening expert asking for recommendations for organic gardening, or have an expert come visit your class. Collect various seed catalogues and use them to compare with the seeds provided in the Woolly Pocket Garden Kit. Create a bulletin board or special place in the classroom to post student questions, drawings, and garden related projects. Discuss your area’s climate and keep track of the weather. How does it affect your garden? Experiment with plants in the classroom to learn what happens when plants are deprived of rich soil, and adequate water and light. Draw or cut out pictures of plants we can eat. Label the plants. Do the same for plants that we cannot eat. Do we use plants for any other reason than for food? Which plants should we put in our garden? Complete a whole class or small group research study on the importance of proper nutrition. Create your own healthy plate by drawing or cutting out pictures. What would you choose to put in each portion of the plate? Share and compare with others. Keep a food diary of everything you eat. Note foods that are healthy choices and those that are not. What can you do to be a healthy eater? What products made from plants do we eat? (Catsup, pickles, French fries, etc.) Investigate plant parts. Match plant parts with the name of the part. Dissect a plant to demonstrate all the parts. Students work with a partner. One will pretend

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

pare the chosen site to other locations to determine why it was chosen. Discuss the pros and cons to determine which place would be the best location.

to be a seed and the other a gardener. Take turns answering the following questions. Seeds: What will help you grow from a seed to a plant? Gardener: How can you help plants grow? Create a to-do list for planting your garden using both perspectives.

Garden Alert: Be sure that your location provides adequate sunlight, a close water source for your chosen watering system, protection from animal predators, such as hungry, leafy greens-loving-bunnies, and easy accessibility for the children. • What and how should we plant? Create Garden Teams (2-4 students) for exploration of the Woolly Pocket seed packets (baggies that you prepared). Garden Alert: Use only the seeds for the appropriate planting season. Give some of the seed baggies to each Garden Team. (Optional: Add other seeds from your area that could be planted in the garden.) Students select pairs of packets and determine how they are similar different. Notice the attributes of the seeds (color, size, planting season, etc.). Help students sort the seed packets according to their attributes. Create a list of plants each team recommends for inclusion in the garden. Discuss why those seeds are recommended. Come together as a class, share the recommendations and determine what will be planted. Create a garden plan with your students to show what and where items will be planted. For Pockets, we recommend that you assign one or two (no more than two) student gardeners per Woolly Pocket and plant one type of seed or plant per pocket. Or, create larger garden teams that are responsible for a specific area or certain number of Pockets. If you are planting Meadows, divide each Meadow into quadrants and have a small group assume responsibility for each quadrant. Garden Alert: However you divide up your Pockets/ Meadows, ensure that each student is responsible for some portion of the garden. Students will feel more invested in the garden project if they have their own pocket or space of which to take care. Also, be aware of the planting instructions on each seed packet, including watering and maintenance needs.

Shared writing: Draft a letter to your principal stating why you want to locate your garden in a particular place. Math connections: Measure the area of the garden; count the number of seeds per packet. Create garden signs that will indicate what has been planted. Popsicle sticks work great! Experiment with sprouting seeds (use a sprouter – a multi-level plastic tray, or sponges or paper towels) to better understand what will happen when planting seeds in your garden. Create a mural or window art to show how the garden looks before planting and what students think it will look like after the seeds grow. Add to the mural after plants begin to grow and throughout the life cycle. Create a class Garden Journal or chart; record planting events. Connect with a garden buddy classroom to share your experiences. This might be a class with or without their own garden. Partnering with a different class of a different grade level provides mentoring opportunities. This can be expanded to reading and drawing/writing in the garden as well. Create a specialty garden: ingredients for making salsa, Italian dishes, Three Sisters Garden – corn, beans, squash. Have a garden party to celebrate successful planting.

Discuss how the organic soil and the compost tea will help the garden seeds grow into healthy plants (see Garden Manual for directions, Teacher Resources for website).

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 1 — 2

23


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

WRAP UP Student gardeners measure and place the soil in the Pockets/Meadows. Next, they will plant the seeds according to the packet directions. Garden teams might do this one team at a time while other students are involved in other activities (reading garden books, drawing pictures, participating in Off the Beaten Path activities, etc.), or have a whole class planting event by enlisting parent volunteers or older students to help with planting. • • • •

Discuss how the plant needs will be met. Demonstrate the watering system. Predict how long it will take the seeds to grow. Celebrate!

24

Planning + Creating : Grades 1 — 2

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: PLANNING + CREATING

Grades 3–5 Tim e: Tw o We e k s – O ne M on t h

In the middle grades, students are refining both their understandings of plants and their own place in the garden ecosystem through focused investigations. The Garden Journal is an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. As students examine their eating habits and recommended nutrition guidelines, they begin to make changes to their diets while exploring enjoyable ways to eat vegetables they have grown. They connect their organic garden to themselves and their place in the local food chain. Finally, they reflect on their experiences and what they’ve learned, and make recommendations for the garden in the future.

objectives

essential questions

• Students will help choose seeds to plant.

• What are the benefits of having your own garden?

• Students will help plant the garden.

• What are healthy food choices and why are they

• Students will help plan location for garden.

• Students will understand that plants are important to people. • Students will understand that making healthy eating choices makes for healthy bodies.

• Why do people have gardens?

important? • What do plants need in order to grow? • What plants grow where you live? • What plants grow this time of year?

• Students will understand that plants have specific needs. • Students will understand that needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy.

Basic materials

• Woolly Pocket School Garden Kit and Manual • Seed Baggies: Prepare by carefully opening seed

• Students will understand that plants interact with

packet across the top and pouring seeds into a

their environment, and that climate and season

baggie. Place the seed packet envelope in the

can effect their survival, growth and health.

baggie with the seeds and seal tightly. • Organic soil • Compost tea (prepare according to Manual instructions) • Gardening literature, resources

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 3 — 5

25


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Create a bulletin board or special area in the classroom to post student questions, drawings, and garden related projects.

Create (or continue) Garden Journals that students will use to record observations of plant growth and garden changes over time. This journal can be a spiral bound notebook, composition book or folder with notebook paper and/or copy paper. Students should date their entries. Plan for consistent daily/ weekly observation times. Introduce the idea of being garden naturalists and scientists who observe changes in the garden. Naturalists study the world around them and notice sights, sounds, colors and changes in their natural surroundings. They care about the environment. As scientists, students will pose questions, make observations, prove a hypothesis, measure growth, etc. Double entry journals can be used, in which student gardeners use one side of the journal to record scientific predictions, drawings, measurements and descriptions; on the other side, students record their observations and reactions/feelings as naturalists.

Naturalist Scientist Plant grew one inch. Why is the soil dry?

Leaves look like fans. Its peaceful in the garden.

Activate prior knowledge: Read a garden related story (see Resource List). Create a classroom display of fiction and non-fiction books about gardening for reference and sharing. Writer’s Workshop: As a pre-assessment, in Garden Journals, ask students to write what they know about gardens and plants. Draw and label a picture of your ideal garden. Consider what your favorite foods are. What would you want to grow? Record any questions you have at this time. Start a class list of key vocabulary words and phrases as well as questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study.

26

Planning + Creating : Grades 3 — 5

Take a field trip to a farmer’s market or local garden/ farm. Notice what is available in this season. Return during another growing season to see how the selection changes. Take a field trip to grocery store to talk to a produce manager about where vegetables are grown. Does this change during the year? What vegetables are sold year-round, and which are seasonal? Bring in a variety of articles on locally sourced foods, organically grown foods and sustainable gardening. Conduct a debate in which students support a pro or con position on any of these topics. Take a field trip to botanical garden. What are native plants? What were first vegetables cultivated in your area? Are native or heirloom seeds and/or plants available? Write a letter to a local garden shop or gardener asking for recommendations for organic gardening, or have an expert come visit your class. What do they grow in their garden? Why do they grow what they do? What recommendations would they make for your garden? Additional discussion topics: • What products made from plants do we eat? (Catsup, pickles, French fries, etc.) • How are whole plant foods nutritionally different from processed foods made with vegetables? • Write in your journal what vegetables you eat and where the vegetables were grown. Read labels and grocery store tags; talk to person selling food. • Discuss what goes into producing your vegetables. Seeds, soil, water, air and sunshine are the obvious. If students don’t bring up transporting food, suggest that it takes fuel to transport food to market (the farther the food travels, the more fuel is consumed). Bring in a variety of fruits, whole beans, sunflowers, corn on the cob. Examine the fruits and flowers and locate the seeds. Sort and compare the fruits and seeds by a variety of properties (e.g., number of seeds per fruit, location of seed, size and shape of seed). Soak and dissect bean seeds. Identify the parts of the seed (embryo, stored food, cotyledon). Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D At this point, establish a routine of ongoing whole group discussions in which all students are engaged in conversations about key vocabulary, questions and concepts. Bring in a variety of fresh veggies and seeds for snack. Conduct a comparison test with grocery store (not local) vegetables and locally grown vegetables from a farmer’s market or local garden. What differences do you notice in size? Color? Texture? Taste? Have a conversation about why people grow their own vegetables. Discuss what kinds of plants you would like to grow in your garden. Do you want to plant a specialty garden, such as Italian (tomatoes, zucchini, basil, oregano, garlic) or Mexican (tomatoes, zucchini, cilantro, onion, peppers), etc.? Conversation starters for ongoing discussion and Garden Journal topics: • • • •

Who has had or seen a garden? Describe. Why are plants important to us? How are plants good for the environment? What veggies do you eat? Brainstorm in small groups, and then share with whole group all the vegetables the class has eaten in the past day/week. • Where do you get the food that you eat? • Why do people have gardens? • What does it mean to have an organic, sustainable garden?

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D Sprout a variety of seeds (in a sprouter, plastic bags, on paper towels or in jars) in the classroom. Notice the “seed leaves” and identify monocots and dicots. Sort the sprouted seeds by a variety of attributes. Cut out pictures of food from magazines. Sort these into healthy, okay and not so healthy. Use these pictures to create meal collages that represent a Healthy Plate. What would you choose to put in each portion of the plate? Share and compare with others. Discuss your area’s climate and keep track of the weather. How does it affect your garden? Check planthardiness.ars.usda.gov website for your planting zone. Experiment with plants in the classroom to learn what happens when plants are deprived of rich soil, adequate water and light. Create a garden collage with pictures of plants you’ve cut from magazines and garden catalogs. Math connections: Measure the area of the garden; determine how many seeds should be planted per square foot and how many seeds will be needed for the area.

ONGOING EXPERIENCES Introduce the idea of “My Plate” (www.choosemyplate.gov) and discuss the importance of eating a variety of nutritious foods. Discuss what makes a food nutritious. Bring in (or ask students to bring) nutrition labels from foods ranging from junk food to nutritious. Sort the items into three categories (healthy, okay and not so healthy). Think about your dinner yesterday. Create a plate showing your dinner. Is it a healthy plate? If not, what changes could you make s it is a healthy plate? What happens when we eat the not so healthy choices? What happens when we make healthy choices? Why is locally grown produce a healthy choice? What and how should we plant? Create Garden

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 3 — 5

27


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Teams (2-4 students) for exploration of the Woolly Pocket seed packets (baggies that you prepared). Optional: Add other seeds from your area and/or classroom’s specialty garden choice that could be planted in the garden. What information can you get from the seed packets? In Garden Teams, sort seed packets by: • planting zones (Which seeds can be grown in our area?) • optimal planting seasons • water needs • sunlight needs • plant size/structure (upright, trailing) • produces a food we’d like to eat Based on this information, each team presents its planting recommendations with support from the group’s research. After each team presents, decide as a class which seeds will be planted. Take a walk around your school to scout out a good garden location that will meet the needs of the plants. If that decision has already been made, compare the chosen site to other locations to determine why it was chosen. Discuss the pros and cons to determine which place would be the best location.

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D Bring in a mature plant with all parts present. Identify roots, stem, leaves, flower and/or fruit. Locate seeds. Predict how long it will take the seeds to germinate, and how the first growth will look. Record in Garden Journal. Start a garden pictorial timeline. This could be a large mural, photographic record or individual timelines of drawings in Garden Journals. Team up with another class with or without a garden to share garden experiences. This could be a class with or without their own garden. Students choose a “garden buddy.” Garden buddies might read, write, garden and visit together about the garden. Partnering with a different grade level class provides for mentoring opportunities. This can be expanded to reading and writing in the garden as well. Read aloud Just a Dream, by Chris Van Allsburg; Brother Eagle, Sister Sky, by Susan Jeffers and/ or Dear Children of the Earth, by Schim Schimmel. Discuss the role of plants in the earth’s ecosystem.

Garden Alert: Be sure that your location provides adequate sunlight, a close water source for your chosen watering system, protection from animal predators, such as hungry, leafy-greens-loving bunnies, and easy accessibility for the children. Create a garden plan with your students to show what and where items will be planted. For Pockets, assign one or two student gardener per Woolly Pocket and plant one type of seed or plant per pocket. Or, create larger garden teams that are responsible for an area or certain number of Pockets. If you are planting Meadows, divide each Meadow into quadrants and have a small group assume responsibility for each quadrant. Garden Alert: However you divide up your Pockets and/or Meadows, ensure that each student is responsible for some portion of the garden. Students will feel more invested in the garden project if they have their own Pocket or space. Also, be aware of the planting instructions on each seed packet including watering and maintenance needs.

28

Planning + Creating : Grades 3 — 5

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Discuss how the organic soil and the compost tea will help the garden seeds grow into healthy plants (See Garden Manual for directions and Teacher Resources for website). Plan soil and nutrient needs for planting. How much soil is needed? What kind? How will you meet the plants’ ongoing nutritional needs? Will you compost or get compost from a local source? Will you continue to order Compost Tea? WRAP UP Student gardeners measure and place the soil in the Pockets/Meadows. Next, they will plant the seeds according to the packet directions. Garden Alert: Keep the seed packets for future reference. You can do this one garden team at a time while other students are involved in other activities (e.g., reading garden books, drawing pictures, recording in Garden Journal, etc.) or have a whole class planting event by enlisting parent volunteers to help with planting. • Discuss how the plant needs will be met. • Demonstrate the watering system. • Celebrate! Writer’s Workshop: Record state of the garden after planting as a scientist on left side of page in Garden Journal and as a naturalist on the right side. Left side could contain sketch of whole garden and/ or part for which you are responsible with measurements, how many and what seeds were planted, what kind of soil and compost was used, date and time planting occurred, how many hours of sunshine the garden will receive and plan for watering. Right side might contain sensory words and pictures describing planting experience, feelings about gardening, hopes for seeds and plants, etc.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 3 — 5

29


GARDEN PATH: PLANNING + CREATING

Grades 6–8 Tim e: Tw o We e k s – O ne M on t h

In middle school, students continue to be involved in planning and maintaining their garden and finding ways to use the garden’s produce. They pose questions and conduct targeted investigations and research to answer those questions. The Garden Journal continues to be an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. Students can also look at how their local actions fit into a more global and historical ecosystem. As they explore and research gardening, food origins, distribution and preparation, middle school students will develop personal positions regarding their participation in these processes.

OBJECTIVES

essential questions

• Students will help choose seeds to plant.

• What are the benefits of having your own garden?

• Students will help plant the garden.

• What are healthy food choices and why are they

• Students will help plan location for garden.

• Students will understand that plants are, and have always been, important to people. • Students will understand that making healthy eating choices makes for healthy bodies. • Students will understand that plants have specific

• Why do people have gardens?

important? • What do plants need in order to thrive? • What plants grow in your area? • What plants have historically been grown in your area? • What plants grow this time of year?

needs. • Students will understand that needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy. • Students will understand that plants interact with

basic materials

• Woolly Pocket School Garden Kit and Manual

their environment, and that climate and season

• Seed packets

can effect their survival, growth and health.

• Organic soil • Compost tea (prepare according to Manual instructions) • Gardening literature • Resources, including current data and information on childhood overweight and obesity

30

Planning + Creating : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Create a bulletin board or special area in the classroom to post student questions, drawings and garden related projects.

Start a class list of key vocabulary words and phrases as well as questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study. Create a classroom library of fiction and non-fiction books about gardening for reference and sharing. Create (or continue) Garden Journals that students will use to record observations of plant growth and garden changes throughout the growing season. Introduce or review the idea of being garden naturalists and scientists who will observe changes in the garden. Naturalists study the world around them and notice sights, sounds, colors and changes in their natural surroundings. They care about the environment. What evidence is there that you have created an organic, sustainable garden? As scientists, students will pose questions, make observations, prove a hypothesis, measure growth, etc. Double entry journals can be used, in which student gardeners use to record scientific predictions, drawings, measurements and descriptions on one side of the journal; on the other side record their observations and reactions/feelings as naturalists. Students should date entries. Another option is to keep electronic notebooks with scientific data and a sketchbook for recording naturalist observations and sensory experiences.

Naturalist Scientist Broccoli grew 5 cm in height. Why is the soil drier on the edge?

Leaves look like fans. It’s peaceful in the garden.

Take a field trip or write a letter to a farmer’s market or local garden/farm. Ask for recommendations for organic gardening, or have an expert come visit your class. What do they grow in their garden in this season? Why do they grow what they do? What recommendations would they make for your garden? Take a field trip to a grocery store to talk to a produce manager about where the vegetables are grown. Does this change during the year? Which vegetables are sold year-round, and which are seasonal? How are they transported to the store? Take a field trip to a botanical garden. What are native plants? What were first vegetables cultivated in your area? Are native or heirloom seeds and/or plants available? Additional discussion topics: • What products made from plants do we eat? (Catsup, pickles, French fries, etc.) • How are whole plant foods nutritionally different from processed foods made with vegetables? • Write in your journal what vegetables you eat and where the vegetables were grown. Read labels and grocery store tags and talk to person selling food. • Discuss what goes into producing your vegetables. Seeds, soil, water, air and sunshine are the obvious. If students don’t bring up transporting food, suggest that it takes fuel to transport food to market. The farther the food travels, the more fuel is consumed. Conduct a debate on a food-related topic (e.g., locally sourced foods, organically grown foods, vegetarianism, agribusiness, etc.). Students research a topic, and then draw straws to determine whether they will support a pro or con position. Soak and dissect bean seeds. Identify the parts of the seed (embryo, stored food, cotyledon).

Writer’s Workshop: As a pre-assessment, in Garden Journal, ask students to write what they know about gardens and plants. Draw and label a picture of your ideal garden. Consider what your favorite vegetables are. What seeds would you plant? Record any questions you have at this time.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Discuss your area’s climate and keep track of the weather. How does it affect your garden plan? Check www.planthardiness.ars.usda.gov for your planting zone.

Planning + Creating : Grades 6 — 8

31


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

At this point, establish a routine of ongoing whole group discussions in which all students are engaged in conversations about key vocabulary, questions and concepts.

Discuss water conservation. How important is it in your area? How can you ensure that your garden will be a good use of water?

Activate prior knowledge: Ask students to each bring in a vegetable or two. Conduct a comparison test with grocery store (not local) vegetables and locally grown vegetables from a farmer’s market or local garden. What differences do you notice in size? Color? Texture? Taste? Have a conversation about why people grow their own vegetables. Conversation starters for ongoing discussion and Garden Journal topics: • • • • •

• • • •

Who has had or seen a garden? Have you been to a Farmer’s Market? Why are plants important to us? How are plants good for the environment? What veggies do you eat? Brainstorm in small groups, and then share with whole group all the vegetables the class has eaten in the past day/ week. Where does the food that you eat come from? Why do people have gardens? What foods have historically been grown in your area? What does it mean to have an organic, sustainable garden?

ONGOING EXPERIENCES Introduce the idea of “My Plate” (www.choosemyplate.gov) and discuss the importance of eating a variety of nutritious foods. What happens when we consistently eat the not so healthy choices? What happens when we go with the healthy choices? Why is locally grown produce a healthy choice? Discuss what kinds of plants you would like to grow in your garden. Consider the topics you will be studying this year. You may want to plant a specialty garden, such as Italian (tomatoes, zucchini, basil, oregano, and garlic), Mexican (tomatoes, zucchini, cilantro, onion, and peppers), etc. Or, you could plant a garden based on the foods of the indigenous people of your area, an ancient culture you are studying, etc.

32

Planning + Creating : Grades 6 — 8

Bring in menus from local restaurants. Use the menus to plan meals with healthy choices. Compare to meals that are not as healthy. Experiment with plants in the classroom to learn what happens when plants are deprived of rich soil, and adequate water and light. Math connections: Measure the area of the garden; determine how many seeds should be planted per square foot and how many seeds will be needed for the area. Bring in a mature plant with all parts present. Identify roots, stem, leaves, flower and/or fruit. Locate seeds. Plant some basil seeds in the classroom. Follow the plants through their life cycle.

Start a garden pictorial timeline. This could be a large mural, photographic record or series of video clips. Team up with another class to share garden experiences. Students choose a “garden buddy.” Garden buddies can read, write, garden and visit together about the garden. Use the seed packets as a resource to predict how long it will take the seeds to germinate, how the first growth will look and when you will see the first vegetable production. Record in Garden Journal. Consider pairing compatible plants. Find pairs of seeds that have compatible needs (watering, sunlight, etc) for planting together. Consider pairing a plant that will provide shade for or attract beneficial insects to another plant. Read aloud Just a Dream, by Chris Van Allsburg; Brother Eagle, Sister Sky, by Susan Jeffers and/or Dear Children of the Earth, by Schim Schimmel. Discuss the role of plants in the earth’s ecosystem.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Share current articles about the incidence of childhood overweight and obesity. Discuss the possible contributing factors. Discuss what makes a food nutritious. Bring in (or ask students to bring) nutrition labels from foods ranging from junk food to nutritious. Sort the items into three categories (Healthy, Okay and Not So Healthy). Think about your dinner yesterday. Create a plate showing your dinner. Is it a healthy plate? If not, what changes could you make so it is a healthy plate? What and how should we plant? Create Garden Teams (2-4 students) for exploration of the Woolly Pocket seed packets and any other seeds from your area and/or classroom’s specialty garden of choice that could be planted in the garden. What information can you get from the seed packets? • In Garden Teams, sort seed packets by: • planting zones (Which seeds can be grown in our area?) • optimal planting seasons • water needs • sunlight needs • plant size/structure (upright, trailing) • produces a food we’d like to eat Based on this information, each team presents their planting recommendations with support from their research. After each team presents, decide as a class which seeds will be planted. Take a walk around your school to scout for a good garden location that will meet the needs of the plants. If that decision has already been made, compare the chosen site to other locations to determine why it was chosen. Discuss the pros and cons to determine which place would be the best location. Garden Alert: Be sure that your location provides

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 6 — 8

33


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D adequate sunlight, a close water source for your chosen watering system, protection from animal predators, such as hungry, leafy-greens-loving bunnies, and easy accessibility for the student gardeners. Create a garden plan with your students to show what and where items will be planted. For Pockets, assign one or two student gardener per Woolly Pocket and plant one type of seed or plant per pocket. Or, create larger garden teams that are responsible for an area or certain number of Pockets. If you are planting Meadows, divide each Meadow into quadrants and have a small group assume responsibility for each quadrant. Garden Alert: However you divide up your Pockets and/or Meadows, ensure that each student is responsible for some portion of the garden. Students will feel more invested in the garden project if they have their own Pocket or space. Also, be aware of the planting instructions on each seed packet including watering and maintenance needs. Discuss how the organic soil and the compost tea will help the garden seeds grow into healthy plants (See Garden Manual for directions and Teacher Resources for website). Plan soil and nutrient needs for planting. How much soil is needed? What kind? How will you meet the plants’ ongoing nutritional needs? Will you compost or get compost from a local source? Will you continue to order Compost Tea? WRAP UP Student gardeners measure and place the soil in the Pockets/Meadows. Next they will plant the seeds according to the packet directions.

34

Planning + Creating : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Garden Alert: Keep the seed packets for future reference. • Discuss how the plant needs will be met. • Demonstrate the watering system. • Celebrate! Writer’s Workshop: Record state of the garden after planting as scientist on left side of page in Garden Journal and as a naturalist on the right side. Left side could contain sketch of whole garden and/ or part for which you are responsible with measurements, how many and what seeds were planted, what kind of soil and compost was used, date and time planting occurred, how many hours of sunshine the garden will receive and plan for watering. Right side might contain sensory words and pictures describing planting experience, feelings about gardening, hopes for seeds and plants, etc.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Planning + Creating : Grades 6 — 8

35


GARDEN PATH: INVESTIGATING AND OBSERVING

Grades 1–2 Time: Ongoing through growth cycle (two—four months)

At this level, students are actively involved in the planning and maintenance of the garden. They watch the garden change from dirt into a dynamic ecosystem. As they follow plants through the growth cycle from seed to mature plant, they observe first-hand how plants turn water, soil and sunshine into delicious, nutritious food. They notice the interactions of plants and animals and pose questions (wonder) about life in the garden.

objectives

• Students will help maintain the garden. • Students will observe and record plant growth. • Students will pose and answer questions about the garden. • Students will understand that a plant and its parts change over time. • Students will understand that needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy.

essential questions

• How do gardens change over time? • What is needed to maintain a garden? • What is an organic sustainable garden? • What is the life cycle of plants?

basic materials

• Garden Journals (see below)

36

Investigating + Observing : Grades 1 — 2

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Share the stories of well–known naturalists/ecologists such as Rachel Carson, Jacques Cousteau, John Muir, Ansel Adams, Teddy Roosevelt, Dr. Seuss.

Create or continue adding to the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study. Create Garden Journals that students will use to record observations of plant growth and garden changes over time. Plan for daily/weekly observation times. Introduce the idea of being garden naturalists and scientists who observe changes in the garden. Naturalists study the world around them and notice sights, sounds, colors and changes in their natural surroundings. They care about the environment. As scientists, students will pose questions, make observations, prove a hypothesis, measure growth, etc. Create double entry journals, in which student gardeners record scientific predictions, drawings, measurements and descriptions on one side of the journal; on the other side, they record their observations and reactions/feelings as naturalists. Adapt as necessary using both pictures and words. Option: Keep a more detailed whole class journal and provide a picture journal for each child.

Naturalist Scientist

Leaves look like fans.

Plant grew 1 inch. Why is the soil dry?

It’s peaceful in the garden.

Continue to read stories and gardening resource books. Conduct an independent or group study. Students choose a garden topic about which they would like to know more. They can watch videos, read books, and interview experts to become experts themselves, and then they share what they have learned with the class. Suggested topics: a specific plant, garden pests, plant needs, plant parts, growing seasons, farming, etc. Create a class pictorial garden record using available technology, pictures, video, PowerPoint, etc. Spend time in the garden as an inspiration for Writers’ Workshop stories and poems. Use seeds, leaves, and flowers to create garden collages. Create your own new plant using unusual materials. Make sure it has all the necessary parts. Describe how it grows and its characteristics. Visit and observe a local park to decide if it is ecofriendly. What do you notice that is similar to what you have been learning about in the garden? Is the park well cared for? How is it maintained? What resources are being used? Is there anything you can do to help keep the park “clean and green?" Use your five senses to describe the garden. Create a butterfly garden to naturally attract butterflies. Introduce earthworms and/or ladybugs into the garden. Have a Ladybug Release Day. Learn about their role in keeping the garden healthy. Invite parents to help release the ladybugs. Draw pictures and/or create stories and poems.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Investigating + Observing : Grades 1 — 2

37


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

ONGOING EXPERIENCES

Conduct experiments on erosion.

What makes the garden an ecosystem? How will we know that the needs of our plants are being met? How will we ensure that our garden stays healthy? What responsibilities will gardeners and/or garden teams have to ensure a flourishing garden?

Explore water conservation: What is the situation where you live? How does your garden contribute to the ecology of your area?

Brainstorm a list of possible problems that could negatively affect the garden (pests, over or underwatering, weather, etc.). Review plant needs and discuss over and under-watering, weeding, and garden clean up. Plan for how you will care for the garden as well as observe and enjoy it.

Learn about composting (see Resource List for helpful websites and books) and begin a compost bin. Start a recycling program. Chart your efforts to reduce, recycle, reuse.

Share pictures of insects that could be considered beneficial or harmful to the garden. How can we control pests without harming the environment? What role do pollinators have in our garden? Carefully observe the soil and make a list of what is found under and around the plants (i.e., insects, dead leaves, etc.). Discuss decomposers and their role as nature’s recyclers. Compare their job to humans recycling paper and reusable items. Through regular trips to the garden, predict changes and record observations using Garden Journals. Use hand lenses to notice small changes. Encourage student gardeners to regularly pose and answer questions about the changes in the garden. Chart plant growth and compare one plant to another in regards to size, color, fruit, etc. How have they changed as they have grown? Document the garden/plant changes in the journals. WRAP UP Share Garden Journal entries. Have a celebration of learning. Invite other classes and/or families to a garden party to share your experiences and newfound knowledge. Student gardeners are the experts and should explain to their guests how they created and maintained the garden.

38

Investigating + Observing : Grades 1 — 2

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: INVESTIGATING AND OBSERVING

Grades 3–5 Tim e: O n g o in g t h r o ug h gr ow t h c y c l e

In the middle grades, students are refining both their understandings of plants and their own place in the garden ecosystem through focused investigations. The Garden Journal is an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. As students examine their eating habits and recommended nutrition guidelines, they begin to make changes to their diets while exploring enjoyable ways to eat vegetables they have grown. They connect their organic garden to themselves and their place in the local food chain. Finally, they reflect on their experiences and what they’ve learned, and make recommendations for the garden in the future.

objectives:

essential questions:

• Students will observe and record plant growth.

• What is the life cycle of plants?

• Students will pose and answer questions about the

• How do plants interact with insects and other ani-

garden.

mals?

• Students will follow plants through the life cycle,

• How is the garden an ecosystem?

including germination, maturation, flowering, pollination

• How do gardens change over time?

and fruit production.

• What do you need to maintain a garden?

• Students will identify and observe plant parts and

• What is an organic sustainable garden?

• Students will help maintain garden.

• What are the functions of plant parts?

their functions. • Students will understand that needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy.

basic materials • Garden Journals

• Measurement tools • Gardening literature and resources • Cotton swabs • Hand lenses

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Investigating + Observing : Grades 3 — 5

39


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Read and compare the stories of well-known naturalists such as Rachel Carson, Jacques Cousteau, John Muir, Ansel Adams, Teddy Roosevelt, and Dr. Seuss. Discuss their connections to nature and how they shared with the public. How does their work connect to what we are doing in the garden?

Create or continue adding to the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study. Create or continue Garden Journals that students will use to record observations of plant growth and garden changes over time. See Planning and Creating Garden Path for complete description. Plan for daily/weekly observation times. Discuss: What responsibilities will gardeners and/or garden teams have to ensure a flourishing garden? How will we know that the needs of our plants are being met? How will we ensure that our garden stays healthy? What makes the garden an ecosystem? Brainstorm a list of possible problems that could negatively affect the garden. Review plant needs and discuss over- and under-watering, weeding, and garden clean up. Plan for how you will care for the garden as well as observe and enjoy it. ONGOING ACTIVITIES Through regular trips to the garden, predict changes and record observations using Garden Journals. Use hand lenses to notice small changes. Encourage student gardeners to regularly pose and answer questions about the changes in the garden. Chart plant growth and compare one plant to another in regards to size, number of seed leaves, growth rate, etc. Identify the parts of the plant as they emerge. Make scientific sketches and record data as plants grow. Make sensory observations about the garden. What sounds, sights, smells, feels and emotions do you notice while in the garden? This is a great time to incorporate science, math and language arts curriculum into the gardening experience. Use ideas from Off the Beaten Path to give purpose to garden time, as well.

40

Investigating + Observing : Grades 3 — 5

Share Saguaro Moon: A Desert Journal, by Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini as a model of a scientific and naturalistic journal. Continue to read aloud stories and share gardening resources. Conduct small group literature studies of books in which a garden plays a central part. See Resource List for titles. Identify the part of each garden plant that is edible. Make class list of roots, stems, leaves, flowers/ buds, fruits and seeds we eat. What edible plant parts are growing in our garden? Compare monocotyledons to dicotyledons as plants germinate. Compare root structures of several plants. Discuss the functions of branched and taproots. Model the function of stems. Compare leaf structures among plants. Make leaf rubbings to observe vein structure. Dissect fruit to count the number of seeds each contains. Dissect a large flower, e.g., squash, lily, etc. Identify the parts of the flower and how the flower is pollinated so that the plant can produce fruit and reproduce. Observe butterflies, bees or other insects gathering nectar on flowers. Pollinate flowers by moving pollen from the stamen (on the anther) to the stigma (on the pistil) with a cotton swab to increase the likelihood that fruit forms. Spend time in the garden as inspiration for Writer’s Workshop and art projects. Write poetry, similes, make sketches, write music, etc. to express what you’ve noticed.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

Questions to consider and discuss while garden is growing:

Create charts and graphs to display data collected in the garden.

• Are plants’ needs being met? Do they need more sun? Less? More water? Less? Thinning? • What animals interact with the plants in the garden? Which of these animals harms the plants? Which help? How? • How can we control pests without harming the plant? • Which part(s) of each plant is edible? • How long will it take each kind of plant in the garden to reach the stage where it is edible? • Are flowers being pollinated? How?

How many hours of sunshine is the garden receiving? Make charts, graphs, or drawings to show findings.

WRAP UP Share Garden with the “public.” Have a celebration of learning. Invite other classes and/or families to a garden party to share your experiences and newfound knowledge. Student gardeners are the experts and should explain to their guests how they created and are maintaining the garden.

Learn about composting. See Resource List for helpful websites and books, and begin a compost bin. Read books about earthworms and other decomposers (see Resource List). Introduce earthworms into the garden. Read books and articles about chemical and organic pesticides and their short and long-term effects. If your garden is suffering with pests, find a recipe for an organic spray. Introduce ladybugs into the garden. See Resource List for ordering information. Learn about their role in keeping the garden healthy. Have a Ladybug Release Day. Invite parents to help release the ladybugs. Draw pictures and/or create stories and poems. As a class, small groups or individuals, formulate a question that can be answered by observing and collecting data from the garden. These questions could include, but should not be limited to: • How quickly are different plants growing? • How does the amount of light the plants receive affect plant growth? • What is the optimal amount/frequency of watering for a particular plant type? • How does adding nutrients to the soil affect plant growth? • How does introducing worms to the garden affect plant growth? • Does assisting pollination increase fruit production? Write a hypothesis, set up a control and experimental plant or several plants to observe, collect data and interpret the data. Share results with a graph, chart, PowerPoint, etc.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Investigating + Observing : Grades 3 — 5

41


OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D Independent or group study. Choose a garden topic that you would like to know more about. Watch videos, read books and articles, interview experts to become an expert. Share what you have learned with the class. Suggested topics are: a specific plant, garden pests, pesticides, organic vs. traditional gardening, crop rotation, organic farming, large-scale agriculture, etc. Form two teams and have a debate about sustainable organic gardening. Use information that you have collected from research, experiences and experts to support and defend your position. What are the pros and cons of sustainable organic gardens compared to agribusinesses that don’t use similar practices?

42

Investigating + Observing : Grades 3 — 5

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: INVESTIGATING AND OBSERVING

Grades 6–8 Tim e: O n g o in g t h r o ug h gr ow t h c y c l e ( t w o — fo u r m o n th s )

In middle school, students continue to be involved in planning and maintaining their garden and finding ways to use the garden’s produce. They pose questions and conduct targeted investigations and research to answer those questions. The Garden Journal continues to be an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. Students can also look at how their local actions fit into a more global and historical ecosystem. As they explore and research gardening, food origins, distribution and preparation, middle school students will develop personal positions regarding their participation in these processes.

objectives

essential questions

• Students will observe and record plant growth and

• What do you need to maintain a garden?

changes in the garden.

• What is an organic sustainable garden?

• Students will pose and answer questions about the

• What is the life cycle of plants?

garden.

• How is our garden an ecosystem?

• Students will follow plants through the life cycle,

• How do plants interact with insects and other ani-

including germination, maturation, flowering, pollination

mals?

• Students will continue to maintain the garden.

• How do gardens change over time?

and fruit production. • Students will understand that a plant and its parts change over time. • Students will understand that needs must be met in order for living things to survive, grow and be healthy.

basic materials

• Garden Field Journals (see below for suggestions) • Gardening literature, resources • Measurement and observation tools (e.g., measuring tapes, meter sticks, hand lenses, microscope)

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Investigating + Observing : Grades 6 — 8

43


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Continue to read and discuss garden literature and resources. Use the internet to discover new information and answer questions that arise.

Continue adding to the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study. Create Garden Journals that students will use to record observations of plant growth and garden changes throughout the growing season. Plan for daily/weekly observation times. Introduce the idea of being garden naturalists and scientists who will observe changes in the garden. Naturalists study the world around them and notice sights, sounds, colors and changes in their natural surroundings. They care about the environment. What evidence can you find to show that you have created an organic, sustainable garden? As scientists, students will pose questions, make observations, prove a hypothesis, measure growth, etc. Create double entry journals, in which student gardeners record scientific predictions, drawings, measurements and descriptions on one side of the journal; on the other side, their observations and reactions/feelings as naturalists are recorded. Or, keep electronic notebooks with scientific data and a sketchbook for recording naturalist observations and sensory experiences.

Research the stories of well–known naturalists/ ecologists such as Rachel Carson, Jacques Cousteau, John Muir, Ansel Adams, Teddy Roosevelt, Dr. Seuss. What do they have in common? How do they relate to the garden? Use Ansel Adams as inspiration to create a variety of photo compositions. Choose different shapes, colors, sizes and textures from the garden to create interesting photos. Experiment with lighting and using grey tones as well as full color. Undertake a garden related study alone or with a partner. Choose a topic that you would like to know more about. Watch videos, read books, interview experts to become knowledgeable. Share what you have learned with the class. Suggested topics: hydroponics, organic versus natural, agribusiness, hybrid plants, pesticides. Publish a garden newsletter to provide details about what is going on from a scientific and naturalist viewpoint. Create a scale map of the garden. Use it to chart ongoing changes and/or issues in the garden.

Scientist

Naturalist

Learn about the native plants in your area. How have these plants been used historically? How has gardening in your area changed over time? Interview local gardeners to gather information.

Broccoli grew 5 cm in height.

Leaves look like fans.

Why is the soil drier on the edge of hte garden?

Create a garden blog to share discoveries and ask/ answer related questions.

Bees floating by.

Spend time in the garden as an inspiration for Writers’ Workshop stories, poems and art (leaf rubbings, pressed flowers or leaves, water color, pencil sketches, garden collages using seeds, leaves and/ or flowers). Take a field trip to a park. How does this ecosystem compare to the garden? Help clean up. As an investigative reporter, discover what pollution issues exist where you live. How can you make a positive impact?

44

Investigating + Observing : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

ONGOING EXPERIENCES

Create and conduct a survey to determine local practices and opinions about sustainable gardening.

Discuss and answer the following questions. How do we know that we have created an organic and sustainable garden? What evidence proves that assumption? What makes the garden an ecosystem? How will we know that the needs of our plants are being met? How will we ensure that our garden stays healthy? What responsibilities will gardeners and/or garden teams have to ensure a flourishing garden? As a model for investigating and observing, choose two plants from the garden to compare. What measurements, observations and hypotheses can you make? Demonstrate using the measurement tools and recording in the Garden Journals or electronic record. Brainstorm a list of possible problems that could negatively affect the garden (pests, over or underwatering, weather, etc). Review plant needs and discuss over and under-watering, weeding, and garden clean up. Plan for how you will care for the garden as well as observe and enjoy it.

Create a butterfly garden to naturally attract butterflies. Introduce beneficial insects such as earthworms and/or ladybugs into the garden. Learn about their role in keeping the garden healthy. Observe the insects in the garden habitat. What do you notice? Explore water conservation: What is the situation where you live? How does your garden contribute to the ecology of your area? Conduct experiments on erosion. Learn about composting (see Resource List for helpful websites and books) and begin a compost bin. Start a recycling program. Chart your efforts to reduce and recycle. Work with other classrooms to get your school involved.

Research insects that could be considered beneficial or harmful to the garden. How can we control pests without harming the environment? What role do pollinators have in our garden? Carefully observe the soil and make a list of what is found under and around the plants, e.g., insects, dead leaves, etc. Investigate decomposers and their role as nature’s recyclers. Through regular trips to the garden, predict changes and record observations using Garden Journals. Use hand lenses to notice small changes. Encourage student gardeners to regularly pose and answer questions about the changes in the garden. Analyze data that is collected regarding growth, sunlight, water, and weather. Formulate hypothesis about the changes that are occurring and collect evidence to support theories. Chart plant growth and compare plants in regard to size, color, plant parts, etc. How have they changed as they grow? What are similarities and differences? Are some plants more affected by changes in weather or watering? Document the garden/plant observations and changes in Garden Journals and/or with technology.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Investigating + Observing : Grades 6 — 8

45


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

WRAP UP Share Garden Journal entries. What predictions that you made were realized? What are the major changes that you noticed? What questions to do you still have? Have a celebration of learning. Invite other classes and/or families to a garden party to share your experiences and newfound knowledge. Display any projects that were undertaken and data that was collected. Student gardeners are the experts and explain to their guests how they created, maintained and learned from the garden.

46

Investigating + Observing : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: HARVESTING AND CONSUMING

Grades PreK–Kindgergarten At this level, the overarching goal is for children to get involved with their garden in a very physical way. They should enjoy planting, digging, watching bugs and worms, observing plants grow, and tasting foods from the garden. Please see Ten Tips on Gardening with Kids, by Rory Klick at http://communitygarden.org/learn/best-practices10-tips-series.php for a full discussion about the benefits of a kid-based, fun garden experience where dirt and crawly-critters are cool. As the “dirty work” begins, it is essential that all students have access to materials and tools. This is vital to their taking ownership of their garden. It is also important to build a home-school connection so that families share in and support the child’s joy of gardening. Through these rich experiences, children will build a lifelong love for growing plants an eagerness to investigate further in the garden.

objectives

• Students will help maintain the garden. • Students will observe plant growth. • Students will observe bugs and worms in the garden. • Students will harvest the edible plants and use them to create snacks.

essential Questions

• How do seeds/plants change as they grow? • What do you notice and wonder about in the garden? • How do bugs and worms help the garden? • What plant parts can we eat? • How can we use what our garden produces?

basic materials: • Gardening literature

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades PreK — Kindergarten

47


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Continue to read stories and gardening resources.

Establish a regular garden time. Daily short visits and at least one longer time for observation a week would be optimal.

Create or add to class garden mural. Spend time in the garden as an inspiration for Writers’ Workshop stories and poems.

Establish routines for garden time. Discuss respectful treatment of the garden and the plants and animals living there.

Use seeds, leaves, flowers to create garden collages.

Plan for how you will care for the garden as well as observe and enjoy it.

Create a butterfly garden to naturally attract butterflies.

Plan for including students’ families in the gardening experience. Will you have regular days/times for garden helpers, an evening or weekend garden time, before school garden time, etc.

Introduce ladybugs into the garden. Have a Ladybug Release Day. Learn about their role in keeping the garden healthy. Invite parents to help release the ladybugs. Draw pictures and/or create stories and poems.

Create a place in the classroom for recording what students notice and wonder about in the garden. This could be a bulletin board with pictures drawn by students, a list of questions dictated by students and written by the teacher, or a combination of the two. ONGOING EXPERIENCES Continue to share and add to the collection of garden literature.

Invite local chefs to your school to help prepare food from your garden. See [Link to] http://www. letsmove.gov/chefs-move-schools for more information. Have a garden salad lunch. Invite parents, a buddy class or school employees who don’t have a class of their own, e.g., the principal, secretary, nurse, art teacher, librarian.

Discuss and draw/write about changes in the garden. Use hand lenses to notice small changes.

Create “Garden Bouquets” of vegetables, edible flowers and herbs from the garden. Present these to special people at school or take home to use as food.

Set a purpose for some garden times and allow for free exploration during others.

Host a “farmer’s market” at school and invite other classes or families be your “customers.”

Use your five senses to describe the garden.

Serve vegetables from the garden in the school cafeteria.

Read books about worms and how they help plants. Introduce earthworms into the garden. See Resource List.

Tell the story or read the book and make “Stone Soup.”

Notice insects and other critters in the garden. Talk about how they help plants.

Read Growing Vegetable Soup and make vegetable soup. See Resource List.

Talk about plant parts we eat. Read Tops and Bottoms, by Janet Stevens or another book about edible plant parts and brainstorm roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds that we eat. Which edible plant parts are growing in our garden?

Ask family members for favorite recipes using garden produce (salsa with tomatoes, etc.). Invite family members to come cook with the class.

48

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades PreK — Kindergarten

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D As vegetables mature, start with small bite food explorations in the garden. Harvest and then sample small tastes of the mature veggies before deciding how to use them in recipes. Demonstrate proper harvesting and cleaning before allowing students to pick and eat vegetables on their own. Plan for how you will use the produce in your garden. See Off the Beaten Path for some ideas. WRAP UP As growing season winds down, discuss when the next growing season is. Consider what grew well and what you want to grow during the next season. Are there still questions to be answered? Have a birthday party for your garden to celebrate how your garden has “grown up!” Invite family and/ or other classes to celebrate with you. Sing songs, tell stories, share pictures and explain what you have learned. Serve food from the garden and share what you’ve noticed and learned.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades PreK — Kindergarten

49


GARDEN PATH: HARVESTING AND CONSUMING

Grades 1–2 Tim e: O n g o in g f r om t h e t i m e p l a n t s a r e r e ad y to h ar ves t th ro u g h en d o f g rowi n g s eas o n

At this level, students are actively involved in the planning and maintenance of the garden. They watch the garden change from dirt into a dynamic ecosystem. As they follow plants through the growth cycle from seed to mature plant, they observe first-hand how plants turn water, soil and sunshine into delicious, nutritious food. They notice the interactions of plants and animals and pose questions (wonder) about life in the garden.

objectives

essential questions

• Students will pose and answer questions about the

• What are healthy food choices and why are they

• Students will continue to help maintain the garden.

• What is an edible food?

garden.

important?

• Students will determine which plant parts are edible.

• Why is it healthier to eat locally grown produce? • How can you use the garden to create a “Healthy

• Students will harvest the edible plants and use them to create snacks and/or meals. • Students will understand that making healthy eating choices makes for healthy bodies. • Students will understand that eating plants from local gardens promotes a healthy lifestyle and environment.

Plate”? • In what ways can the plants in the garden be used?

basic materials • Garden Journals

• Edible/non-edible examples • Recipes, cookbooks • Restaurant menus • Healthy Plate template/poster • Gardening literature, resources

50

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 1 — 2

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Continue to explore garden literature and resources.

Continue adding to the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study.

Bring in menus from local restaurants. Use the menus to plan meals that are healthy choices. Compare to meals you might choose that are not as healthy.

Look through your Garden Journals and notice the changes that have occurred since the garden was first planted. Share what was noticed in pairs or small groups and then as a whole class. List the changes and answer any questions that may arise.

Create a plan for a new restaurant complete with a healthy menu.

Garden Alert: If the students don’t mention the changes in the various plant parts, particularly the growth of the edible plant parts, ask questions to stimulate their thinking. How will we know when our edible plant parts are ready to harvest? Will they all be ready at the same time? ONGOING EXPERIENCES Introduce the concept of edible vs. non-edible. Bring in two groups of objects: one group of edible items (raisins, sunflower seeds, crackers, apples, popcorn, juice), and one of non-edible items (a pencil, pine cone or seed pod, weeds, grass clippings, newspaper, cup). Ask your students to explain what is similar and what is different about the two groups. Even though some of these things have been grown, or come from things that grow, not all can be eaten, i.e., the cup can hold something edible, but it isn’t edible. Review plant parts and ask which of those parts are edible. Use examples from your garden as well as other plants that you haven’t grown. As an example, demonstrate with a bunch of grapes that the fruit is edible, but the stems are not. Include root vegetables, leafy greens, seeds, etc. Take a trip to the garden to determine which parts of your plants are edible and which are inedible. Can you see all of the edible parts? Do any of the plants have more than one edible part? Are all the plant parts ready to be harvested? Which ones need more time to mature? Discuss and sketch in Garden Journals. Garden Alert: As plants reach maturation, watch for the optimal time to harvest. This could vary widely, depending on what was planted. Check seed packets for estimated time to harvest.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Invite local chefs to your school to help prepare food from your garden. Link to http://www.letsmove. gov/chefs-move-schools Ask parents to share favorite family recipes and be guest chefs. Complete a whole class or small group research study on the importance of proper nutrition. Keep a food diary of everything you eat. Note foods that are healthy choices and those that are not. What can you do to be a healthy eater? Compare the vegetables/herbs from your garden and similar non-organic edibles from the grocery store. How do they compare in taste, color, size? Create your own healthy plate by drawing or cutting out pictures. What would you choose to put in each portion of the plate? Share and compare with others. Have a garden salad lunch. Invite parents, another class or school employees, etc. who don’t have a class of their own, e.g., the principal, secretary, nurse, art teacher, librarian. Create a cookbook of your favorite garden recipes. Bag herbs to take home or sell at your own Farmer’s Market. If you have a surplus of produce, find out if the school cafeteria can use it for lunch or donate it to a food bank. Create co-op gardens by sharing with other classrooms. Work with other garden classrooms to create a meal.

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 1 — 2

51


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Begin your harvesting with small bite food tasting in the garden. First discuss how to harvest the edible parts of the plants. For example, we wouldn’t completely uproot a pepper plant in order to remove the pepper. Which plant parts can be harvested without harming the whole plant? How can we harvest and protect the growing plants? Identify the edible plant parts that are ready to be harvested and taste a variety of small bites from those plants. Garden Alert: Demonstrate harvesting and washing the selected veggies first and then guide students as they follow your example. You might want to preselect and prepare the plants you will use for the tasting. Share your experiences. What was your favorite taste? By what were you surprised? What was something new that you tried? Which veggies/ herbs would you like to use to cook a meal? Record your observations, likes and dislikes in your Garden Journal. Revisit the idea of “Healthy Plates.” (www. healthykidsplate.com) and discuss the importance of eating healthy foods. Why is your locally grown produce a healthy choice? Where do our garden plants fit on the “Healthy Plate?” WRAP UP Search for recipes that include ingredients from the garden. Plan to prepare and cook a variety of dishes. Hint: Check the Resource List. Select recipes that your students will be able to help prepare and primarily consist of garden produce. It is okay to use other ingredients as you are preparing recipes, as long as they promote the idea of healthy eating. Create snacks and dishes with ingredients from the garden. This can be an ongoing activity (including carrots from the garden in daily snack), or a major project (roasting root vegetables for a class luncheon) or any combination of the two. After trying a variety of recipes, decide on your favorites. How do they fit with the idea of an organic, sustainable garden and healthy eating?

52

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 1 — 2

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: HARVESTING AND CONSUMING

Grades 3–5 Time: Ongoing from first veget able maturation through end of growth cycle In the middle grades, students are refining both their understandings of plants and their own place in the garden ecosystem through focused investigations. The Garden Journal is an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. As students examine their eating habits and recommended nutrition guidelines, they begin to make changes to their diets while exploring enjoyable ways to eat vegetables they have grown. They connect their organic garden to themselves and their place in the local food chain. Finally, they reflect on their experiences and what they’ve learned, and make recommendations for the garden in the future.

objectives

• Students will continue to help maintain the garden. • Students will pose and answer questions about the garden. • Students will determine which plant parts are edible. • Students will help harvest edible plants and use them to create snacks and/or meals.

essential Questions

• What is an organic sustainable garden? • What is the life cycle of plants? • What is an edible food? • Why is it healthier to eat locally grown produce? • How can you use the garden to create a “Healthy Plate”? • In what ways can the plants in the garden be used?

• Students will research recipes using the vegetables grown in the garden. • Students will eat and share garden produce. • Students will understand that eating plants from

basic materials

• Garden Journals (see below for suggestions)

local gardens promotes a healthy lifestyle and

• Gardening literature, resources

environment.

• Cookbooks, nutrition books and resources

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 3 — 5

53


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Continue to read stories and gardening resources. Add cookbooks and books about nutrition to classroom collection.

Continue adding to the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study.

Invite local chefs to your school to help prepare food from your garden. Check http://www.letsmove. gov/chefs-move-schools for ideas.

Continue Garden Journals to record observations of plant growth and garden changes over time. Look through your Garden Journals and notice the changes that have occurred since the garden was first planted. Share what was noticed in pairs or small groups and then as a whole class.

Conduct a comparison test with vegetables and herbs from the garden and nonorganic items from the grocery store. How do they differ in color? Texture? Taste? Cost? Miles transported? What benefits do the garden items offer?

Discuss: How will we know when edible plant parts are ready to harvest? Will they all be ready at the same time?

Bring in menus from local restaurants. Use the menus to plan meals with healthy choices. Compare to meals that are not as healthy.

ONGOING EXPERIENCES

Create a plan for a new restaurant complete with a healthy menu. Include menu items with ingredients from your garden.

Take a trip to the garden to review which plant parts are edible and which are mature. What part of each plant are we watching for maturation? How will we harvest the vegetables? Which plant parts can be harvested without harming the plant? Do any plants have more than one edible part? Start with small bite food explorations in the garden. Find veggies that are mature, or ready to be harvested.

Discuss the ideas of “agribusiness,” “industrial,” “organic industrial,” “beyond organic” and “hunter gatherer” as presented in The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan. How does our garden fit into his scheme of food origins? Write a letter to the school administration presenting a plan for healthy meals at school. Can vegetables from the garden be included? Support your proposal with evidence from your experiences and research. Read articles and books about the rise of childhood obesity and the link to diet. Create “Garden Bouquets” of vegetables, edible flowers and herbs from the garden. Present these to special people at school or take home to use as food.

Garden Alert: Demonstrate proper harvesting and washing of vegetables before allowing students to proceed independently. Pick, wash and taste several raw vegetables. What was your favorite taste? By what were you surprised? What was something new that you tried? Which vegetables would you like to try cooked?

54

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 3 — 5

Have a garden salad lunch. Invite parents, another class or school employees, etc. Who don’t have a class of their own, e.g., the principal, secretary, nurse, art teacher, librarian. Host a “food show” in which teams of students each create a dish with garden produce and present it to the class for judging on appearance, taste and nutrition.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

Record your experiences and observations in your Garden Journal.

Plan for the use of surplus food produced in the garden. Some ideas include hosting a “farmer’s market” at school, donating to a food bank or other charitable organization, serving vegetables from the garden in the school cafeteria, making “Stone Soup,” canning, drying and preserving.

Each gardener or garden team researches recipes that are based on ingredients from the garden. Use local chefs, web sites, cookbooks, etc., as resources. Plan to prepare a variety of dishes. Record ideas in your Garden Journal. WRAP UP Create snacks and dishes with ingredients from the garden. This can be an ongoing activity (including carrots from the garden in daily snack), or a major project (roasting root vegetables for a class luncheon) or any combination of the two.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 3 — 5

55


GARDEN PATH: HARVESTING AND CONSUMING

Grades 6–8 Tim e : O n g o i n g f r o m f ir s t v e g e t a b le m a t u r a tio n t hro ug h end o f g ro w t h cy cle

In middle school, students continue to be involved in planning and maintaining their garden and finding ways to use the garden’s produce. They pose questions and conduct targeted investigations and research to answer those questions. The Garden Journal continues to be an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. Students can also look at how their local actions fit into a more global and historical ecosystem. As they explore and research gardening, food origins, distribution and preparation, middle school students will develop personal positions regarding their participation in these processes.

objectives

• Students will continue to help maintain the garden.

essential questions

• What is an organic sustainable garden? • What is the life cycle of plants?

• Students will pose and answer questions about the garden. • Students will help harvest edible plants and use them to create snacks and/or meals. • Students will research recipes using the vegetables grown in the garden.

• What is an edible food? • Why is it healthier to eat locally grown produce? • How can you use the garden to create a “Healthy Plate”? • In what ways can the plants in the garden be used?

• Students will eat and share garden produce. • Students will understand that eating plants from local gardens promotes a healthy lifestyle and environment.

basic materials • Garden Field Journals

• Gardening literature, resources • Cookbooks, nutrition books and resources

56

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Add cookbooks and books about nutrition to classroom gardening library.

Continue adding to the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that are asked along the way. Keep these posted in the classroom and add to them throughout the study. Continue Garden Journals to record observations of plant growth and garden changes over time. Look through your Garden Journals and note the changes that have occurred since the garden was first planted. Discuss: How will we know when edible plant parts are ready to harvest? Will they all be ready at the same time? Take a trip to the garden to review which plant parts are edible and which are mature. What part of each plant are we watching for maturation? How will we harvest the vegetables? Which plant parts can be harvested without harming the plant? Do any plants have more than one edible part? Start with small bite food explorations in the garden. Find veggies that are mature, or ready to be harvested. Garden Alert: Demonstrate proper harvesting and washing of vegetables before allowing students to proceed independently. ONGOING EXPERIENCES Pick, wash and taste several raw vegetables. What was your favorite taste? By what were you surprised? What was something new that you tried? Which vegetables would you like to try cooked? Record your experiences and observations in your Garden Journal. Each gardener or garden team researches recipes that are based on ingredients from the garden. Use local chefs, web sites, cookbooks, etc. as resources. Plan to prepare a variety of dishes. Record ideas in your Garden Journal.

Invite local chefs to your school to help prepare food from your garden. Check http://www.letsmove. gov/chefs-move-schools for info. Read aloud or have a literature circle with The Omnivore’s Dilemma; The Secrets Behind What You Eat, by Michael Pollan, adapted for Young Readers by Richie Chevat. Discuss the ideas of “agribusiness,” “industrial,” “organic industrial,” “beyond organic” and “hunter gatherer.” How does our garden fit into his scheme of food chains? Conduct a comparison test with vegetables and herbs from the garden and nonorganic items from the grocery store. How do they differ in color? Texture? Taste? Cost? Miles transported? What benefits do the garden items offer? Create a plan for a new restaurant complete with a healthy menu. Include menu items with ingredients from your garden. Create “Garden Bouquets” of vegetables, edible flowers and herbs from the garden. Present these to special people at school or take home to use as food. Have a garden salad lunch. Invite parents, another class or school employees, etc., who don’t have a class of their own, e.g., the principal, secretary, nurse, art teacher, librarian. Write a proposal or invite the school administration to the class to present a plan for serving healthy meals at school. Prepare a menu of items using garden produce. Include recipes, nutritional data and research to support the need for change. Host a “food show” in which teams of students each create a dish with garden produce and present it to the class for judging on appearance, taste and nutrition. Plan for the use of surplus food produced in the garden. Some ideas include hosting a “farmer’s market” at school, donating to a food bank or other charitable organization, serving vegetables from the garden in the school cafeteria, making “Stone Soup,” canning, drying and preserving.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 6 — 8

57


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D WRAP UP Create snacks and dishes with ingredients from the garden. This can be an ongoing activity (including carrots from the garden in daily snack), or a major project (preparing a meal for the class and/or guests) or any combination of the two. Share the products of your garden with others.

58

Harvesting + Consuming : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: REFLECTING AND EVALUATING

Grades 1–2 Tim e: O n g o in g ( C a n b e i n c o r p or a t e d w i t h I n ves ti g ati n g an d O b s er vi n g , Har ves ti n g an d C on su m in g G a rd e n P a t h s )

At this level, students are actively involved in the planning and maintenance of the garden. They watch the garden change from dirt into a dynamic ecosystem. As they follow plants through the growth cycle from seed to mature plant, they observe first-hand how plants turn water, soil and sunshine into delicious, nutritious food. They notice the interactions of plants and animals and pose questions (wonder) about life in the garden.

objectives • Students will continue to help maintain the garden. • Students will pose and answer questions about the garden. • Students will reflect on their gardening experience. • Students will make recommendations for further gardening based on their experiences. • Students will understand that as one growing season ends, a sustainable garden will support a new crop the next growing season.

essential questions • What new learning has occurred? • What went well with our garden experience? What would we do differently? • What changes will we make to our garden (location, plants, teams, etc.)? • How will we sustain our garden? • How have our eating habits changed?

basic materials • Garden Journals • Rubric

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 1 — 2

59


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Create a Garden To Do List for a class who has never gardened before. What advice would you give to them?

Look at the vocabulary you have learned and used as well as the questions that have been asked and answered. Work with your students to create a simple rubric to evaluate your garden experience. Begin by modeling statements that reflect the big ideas of your gardening experience. Ask your students what they thought was important about participating as a gardener. Look through Garden Journals and/or the class record and projects. Example: We worked together to plan our garden. We learned about plant parts and their needs.

Create a classroom Alphabet Garden Book with drawings and/or photos. Make a scrapbook of your garden experiences. Include photos, drawings, pressed leaves and flowers. Write a letter to another class or another school to invite them to hear about your garden. Give them advice on how to be gardeners. Send postcards from the garden to friends and family to share your favorite garden story.

We shared the responsibility of caring for the garden.

Find a class who would like to be garden buddies. Share your garden stories with them and teach them how to plan and grow a garden.

Decide on symbols or numbers to evaluate the statements:

Consider a specialty garden and/or garden buddies for the next garden adventure.

3 = We did our best! 2 = We need some more practice on this one 1 = Uh oh – We need some help! ONGOING EXPERIENCES Look through Garden Journals to reflect on the gardening process. What went well, or as expected? What surprises did you encounter? What changes did you have to make? Did the location of the garden work well? How well did you care for your section of the garden? Did you work with a partner or alone? How did the partnership work? What different plants would you like to include in your next garden? Which plants would you like to grow again?

60

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 1 — 2

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D WRAP UP When is the next growing season? What needs to be done to prepare the garden for planting again? Are there plants that are still growing? Are there some plants that need to be removed? If there are still things growing in your garden, continue to observe and harvest while planning for your next steps. Consider what worked well and upon what you want to improve. Have a birthday party for your garden to celebrate that it is all “grown up.” Invite family and/or other classes to celebrate with you. Sing songs, tell stories, share pictures and explain what you have learned.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 1 — 2

61


GARDEN PATH: REFLECTING AND EVALUATING

Grades 3–5 Tim e : O n g o i n g ( C a n b e in c or p o r a te d w ith I nv es t ig at ing & O b s erv ing and H arv es t ing & Co ns uming Garde n Pa t h s)

In the middle grades, students are refining both their understandings of plants and their own place in the garden ecosystem through focused investigations. The Garden Journal is an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. As students examine their eating habits and recommended nutrition guidelines, they begin to make changes to their diets while exploring enjoyable ways to eat vegetables they have grown. They connect their organic garden to themselves and their place in the local food chain. Finally, they reflect on their experiences and what they’ve learned, and make recommendations for the garden in the future.

objectives

essential questions

• Students will pose and answer questions about the

• What went well with our garden experience? What

• Students will continue to maintain the garden.

• What new learning has occurred? would we do differently?

garden. • Students will reflect on their gardening experiences. • Students will make recommendations for further gardening based on their experiences. • Students will understand that as one growing season

• What changes will we make to our garden (location, plants, teams, etc.)? • How will we sustain our garden? • How have our eating habits changed?

ends, a sustainable garden will support a new crop the next growing season.

basic materials • Garden Journals • Seed packets

62

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 3 — 5

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D

OFF THE BEATEN PATH, CONT'D

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Continue to read stories and gardening resources.

Work with your students to create a rubric to evaluate your garden experience. Look at the vocabulary you have learned and used as well as the questions that have been asked and answered. Look through your Garden Journals and projects. Begin by modeling statements that reflect the big ideas of your gardening experience. Ask your students what they thought was important about participating as a gardener.

Write a story or picture book about a human, plant or animal character in a garden. What could they notice, wonder and learn?

Examples: I worked with the class to plan our garden. I learned about plant parts and their functions. I recorded observations and data in my Garden Journal. Decide on numbers to evaluate the statements 4 3 2 1

= = = =

We We We We

went above and beyond! did most of what needed to be done. did some of what needed to be done. did little or nothing.

Conduct a Self-evaluation and (if desired) teacher evaluation of the individual’s gardening participation and learning. ONGOING EXPERIENCES Look through Garden Journals to reflect on the gardening process. What went well, or as expected? What surprises did you encounter? What adjustments did you have to make? What changes would you make to the garden location, timing of planting, watering, etc.? How well did you care for your section of the garden? Did you work with a partner or alone? How did the partnership work?

Read aloud or offer a small group literature study to interested students The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan. Discuss the ideas of “agribusiness,” “industrial,” “organic industrial,” “beyond organic” and “hunter gatherer” as presented in the book. Discuss how our garden fits into his scheme of food origins. What other ideas does it inspire? Harvest seeds from the garden. Package them for planting. Write directions for planting. Be sure to include how many, how far apart, how deep to plant, how much water and sunshine they need, and how long it will take them to produce mature vegetables. In small groups or individually, write a gardening manual for another class or school that has never had a garden. Be sure to include what to plant, when to plant, how to choose a garden location, watering schedule, and some suggestions for how to use the vegetables grown. Review your recipes from Harvesting and Consuming. Were there missing ingredients that you could grow? Would you recommend planting herbs, onions, garlic or other vegetables to complement your recipes? Make a video documentary of your garden experience. Include naturalist as well a scientific experiences and recommendations. Share the video with other classes.

Reread the seed packet directions for the plants in your section of the garden. Compare the seed packet to your Garden Journal. Did the plant grow to the size predicted? Did the vegetable grow as expected? If there are differences, why do you think they occurred? Did plants receive recommended amount of space, sunshine, water and heat? Note what you would do differently to grow this plant and/or vegetable next time. Create a class list of these recommendations.

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 3 — 5

63


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Think about the vegetables you have eaten from the garden. Did you try new foods? What were some of your favorites? As a post-assessment, draw a Healthy Plate you would like to eat. WRAP UP Discuss and do the following: • When is the next growing season? • What needs to be done to prepare the garden for planting again? • If there are still things growing in your garden, continue to observe and harvest while planning for your next steps. • What will need to be done to the soil before planting again next season? • What makes this a sustainable garden? (Notice leaves that have fallen and may decompose and become part of the soil.) • Consider what worked well and what you want to improve upon. • What different plants would you like to include in your next garden? • Which plants would you like to grow again? • Record your recommendations in a class list. Compile all your recommendations to use in planning for the next growing season.

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Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 3 — 5

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH: REFLECTING AND EVALUATING

Grades 6–8 Tim e: Tim e: O n e w e e k - o ng oi n g

In middle school, students continue to be involved in planning and maintaining their garden and finding ways to use the garden’s produce. They pose questions and conduct targeted investigations and research to answer those questions. The Garden Journal continues to be an integral tool for keeping records of questions, observations, predictions and musings. Students can also look at how their local actions fit into a more global and historical ecosystem. As they explore and research gardening, food origins, distribution and preparation, middle school students will develop personal positions regarding their participation in these processes.

objectives

• Students will continue to maintain the garden. • Students will pose and answer questions about the garden. • Students will reflect on their gardening experiences. • Students will make recommendations for further gardening based on their experiences. • Students will understand that as one growing season

essential questions

• How did we work together to create and maintain our garden? • What new learning has occurred? • What went well with our garden experience? What would we do differently? • What changes will we make to our garden (location, plants, teams, etc)?

ends, a sustainable garden will support a new crop

• How will we sustain our garden?

the next growing season.

• How have our eating habits changed?

• Students will understand that reflecting on and evaluating your experiences, builds collegiality, informs decisions and provides improvements for further exploration and study.

basic materials • Garden Journals • Seed packets

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 6 — 8

65


GARDEN PATH

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

Continue to read stories and gardening resources.

Continue Garden Journals to record observations of plant growth and garden changes over time. Look through your Garden Journals and notice the changes that have occurred since the garden was first planted.

Discuss the ideas of “agribusiness,” “industrial,” “organic industrial,” “beyond organic” and “hunter/ gatherer” as presented in The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan. How does our garden fit into his scheme of food origins?

With your students, review the class lists of key vocabulary and questions that have been asked along the way. How have you used the vocabulary? Have you answered your questions? What new understandings do you have?

Harvest seeds from the garden. Package them for planting. Write directions for planting. What key information needs to be included on the package? Design your own seed packets with labels and directions.

ONGOING EXPERIENCES

In small groups or individually, write a gardening guide for another class or school. Be sure to include what to plant, when, garden location, watering schedule, and some suggestions for how to use the vegetables grown.

Ask your students to help create a rubric to evaluate your garden experiences. Begin by modeling statements that reflect the big ideas of your gardening activities. Review and discuss Garden Journals and/or the class record and projects to develop examples of what has been accomplished. Ask your students to think about what was most important about their experiences as gardeners. Examples: We collaborated to plan our garden. We made scientific observations and collected data.

Review your recipes from Harvesting and Consuming. Were there missing ingredients that you could grow? Would you recommend planting herbs, onions, garlic or other vegetables to complement your recipes? Revisit Healthy Plates. How will this impact your eating? Create an ad campaign to increase awareness.

Decide on symbols or numbers to evaluate the statements. 4 3 2 1 0

= = = = =

We went above and beyond! We did great. We did okay. We could have done better. Uh oh – not even close.

Ask students to reflect on their own and then discuss with the whole group as they think about the entire gardening process. What went well, or as expected? What surprises did you encounter? What adjustments did you have to make? What changes would you make to the garden location, timing of planting, watering, etc.? How well did you care for your section of the garden? Did you work with a partner, a group or alone? How did that work out?

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Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 6 — 8

Woolly School Garden Curriculum


GARDEN PATH, CONT'D Reread the seed packet directions for the plants in your section of the garden. Compare the seed packet to your Garden Journal. Did the plant grow to the size predicted? Did the vegetable grow as expected? If there are differences, why do you think? Did plants receive recommended amount of space, sunshine, water and heat? Note what you would do differently to grow this plant and/or vegetable next time. Create a class list of these recommendations. Think about the vegetables you have eaten from the garden. Did you try new foods? What were some of your favorites? Explain how your eating habits changed. Prepare the garden to rest before the next planting season. Are there plants that will survive until the next planting season? Are there dead plants that need to be removed? Notice leaves that have fallen and may have decomposed to become part of the soil. What will need to be done to the soil before planting again next season? What makes this a sustainable garden? WRAP UP In small groups or independently, choose a way to communicate your garden experience by going public, e.g., write an article for a gardening magazine, design a gardening lesson for younger kids, write a speech for a Garden Club or come up with your own idea and have it approved by your teacher!

Woolly School Garden Curriculum

Reflecting + Evaluating : Grades 6 — 8

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