Let’s Get Growing! A Professional Development Series Designed to Facilitate the Fusion of Garden-Based Learning Activities with Common Core Curriculum

Purpose  To facilitate the integration of garden- based learning (GBL) practices and Common Core curriculum  To foster partnerships with local Master Gardeners who will assist in creating an educational garden on the school campus  To assist in acquiring necessary funding from grants, businesses, and/or non-profit organizations

Participants  Elementary and middle school principals interested in the development of a garden learning lab will identify at least two teachers who share their interests. The school garden team will be headed by these individuals.  These teams will participate in the four part Let’s Get Growing professional development series.

Session One (June)  Surveys assessing teachers attitudes and knowledge pertaining to GBL will be completed.  Teachers will be introduced to the benefits of GBL.  Sample pictures of educational gardens will be presented from the following links: /albums/ ?banne r=pwa educators/schoolgardens/gardenphotos/#llgc

 Teachers will examine examples of Junior Master Gardener and Life Lab curricula units.  School garden teams will generate a list of GBL/Common Core curriculum units and lesson plans.  Teachers will be introduced to local experts that will explain basic procedures for planning and designing a school garden. Topics will include but are not limited to; identifying the purpose of the garden, the size, irrigation methods, light patterns, and soil composition.

Session Two (Approximately one week after Session One)  Teachers, principals, and Master Gardener member will meet at the school site.  They will identify an area on the school grounds that will be conducive to garden learning experiences. They will create a garden blueprint, identify materials needed, and take soil samples to be analyzed.

Session Three (Approximately two weeks after Session One)  All school garden teams will meet together. They will share their blueprints and ideas.  Experienced grant writers will assist teams in identifying funding sources and aid in the solicitation of funds.  Teacher teams will write a grant and contact funding sources. Grant writers will be on-hand to offer support and advice.

Session Four (August-October and On-going)  Teachers and administrators will meet with a Master Gardener representative to plan a faculty/student workday at their school.  Materials will be purchased with the funds attained.  The faculty, staff, students, parents, and community members will be encouraged to participate in the process of building the school garden.

After Completion  Teachers will submit the GBL/Common Core units the created. They will also provide student work samples.  Teachers will complete a post-survey intended to provide data regarding their attitudes and knowledge of GBL.

Materials (The Players)  The keys to successful implementation of GBL are administrative support and knowledgeable gardeners. Since Master Gardeners can be found in any state and are required to volunteer at least 25 hours a year in their communities, they are great sources of potential support. Local 4H groups are also great resources. T

 Also plan to equip your teams with the knowledge and skills necessary to attain the funds they need. Encourage them to start small and continue to develop their garden labs.  Pairing teams with experienced grant writers will help to ensure their success. The ideal candidates would be teachers experienced in writing garden related grants.

Materials  Teacher surveys to asses attitudes and knowledge should be created. It is suggested that is be administered at the beginning and the end of the professional development series.  Session One and Session Three will require a meeting facility equipped with Wifi access and a computer for each teacher.  It is strongly suggested that Junior Master Gardner reference materials be available for teachers to view.  The following website was designed to assist Let’s Get Growing presenters. Garden team members will also find this resources website informative. home