A new curriculum unit, developed by the educational staff at the National Gardening Association, which addresses the core specific elements of the water cycle for K-12 students. The lesson plans are grade specific, addressing different aspects of the water cycle and applying the principles to activities and inquiry that can be discussed in and out of the school garden. The curriculum unit is free and can be downloaded from at kidsgardening.org.
May 2013 Issue
Our monthly e-mail newsletter with thematic and standards-based articles, activities, and resources for educators implementing school gardens and family gardening. Keep up to date with our web site, sign up for Kids Garden News.
NEW THIS ISSUE
MONTHLY FEATURES | ANNOUNCEMENTS | RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS | CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS | FUNDING AND OPPORTUNITIES
MONTHLY FEATURES
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Announcements
The National Teacher Institute for Garden-Based Learning is a collaborative partnership between Longwood Gardens and the National Gardening Association. The partnership was formed to offer professional development to educators and volunteers from one of the great gardens of the world and the leader in K-12 plant-based educational resources, materials, and grants. This online course is designed to introduce teachers to the benefits of a school garden program; help them identify ways to build support for developing a garden; create a vision, theme, and design; and distinguish the best curriculum for incorporation into their classroom. Participants will gain practical knowledge for laying the groundwork of a successful program. Course participants will receive valuable feedback from their instructor and other teachers while learning new avenues for student instruction. Their first online course, School Gardening 101 is now open for three summer sections. For more information and register for the course visit the NTI website.
Espoma and NGA will recognize five home gardeners and five retailers nationwide that demonstrate outstanding environmental practices. Each home gardener winner will receive an award package that includes a $500 gift card, and the top retail winner will be invited to receive the award at the 2012 Independent Garden Center Show in Chicago! Learn more about the program, its award packages, and how to apply today.
A new online magazine is now available to gardeners. A Garden Life can be viewed on a tablet, smartphone, or online. It features beautiful images and thoughtful articles on topics that explore life as a garden. Its goal is to help you achieve better health, meaningful spaces and engaged community interaction. Download the app or read it for free!
The Richard C. Bartlett Environmental Education Award is given annually to an outstanding middle or high school teacher who successfully integrates environmental education into their curriculum and engages students in interdisciplinary solutions to environmental challenges. The award recognizes an educator who can serve as an inspiration and model for others. The Richard C. Bartlett Environmental Education Award winner will receive $5,000 and two merit winners will receive $750 each. Review the application for more details.
Greetings gardeners! The National Gardening Association is a proud sponsor of the Grow it Forward Heirloom Seed Contest on YourGardenShow.com. Gardeners from across the U.S. and Canada are coming together to grow over 1,400 heirloom plant varieties as part of a movement to preserve the legacy and diversity of these time-honored plants. "Grow It Forward" for the benefit of future generations, meet some new friends, and have the chance to win some great prizes - like a GrowlightPro from our online store, GardeningWithKids.org. Since March 1, over 1,400 heirloom seed varieties have been sent out and nearly 400 U.S. and Canadian gardens have joined Grow it Forward, and that number is increasing daily - now that's some Grow it Forward power! There's still plenty of time to join in. The contest tally starts over each phase - Seed, Plant, Tend and Harvest - providing multiple chances to win. So head over to YourGardenShow.com and join the movement. You may just meet some new friends and win some great prizes too. To learn more, visit Grow it Forward.
Resources for Educators
In a partnership with Burpee Home Gardens, the National Gardening Association developed the “I Can Grow” guide for educators, and now expands that resource to include individual lesson activities. These educational guides cover a range of subjects with activities rooted in the ground and the world around us. Download the Youth Curriculum free.
Seed Savers Exchange offers a fundraising program for schools and nonprofit organizations. Programs earn 40% of what is sold. Find more details on their website.
This resource provides information about the construction, use, and management of greenhouses. There are useful tips and information about experiments that can be done in a greenhouse. Learn more about greenhouse gardening.
The staff at NGA has compiled survey data from our grant recipients to provide evidence to support youth garden programs. The resulting presentation begins with a model that depicts potential beneficial outcomes of gardening for youth, parents, and the community, followed by data supporting these claims. This presentation, About School Gardening, is available as a resource to anyone attempting to gather support for a youth garden program. Know anyone searching for a way to give back and support youth gardening? NGA has three quick and easy ways to Make a Difference.
Funding Opportunities
Through the Sip to Support a Garden program, sponsored by Jamba Juice, schools and community gardens can earn credits that can be applied toward the purchase of essential gardening equipment suitable for any age from the National Gardening Association’s Gardening with Kids catalog. Participation is easy: Sign up your school or garden organization online. Your organization will receive a Jamba-Kit that includes program details—and start swiping. Each time a supporter uses the swipe card for purchases, Jamba will donate 10% of the purchase to NGA for your purchasing account. Sign up your school and Sip to Support online.
The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation (FTPF) is an award-winning international nonprofit charity dedicated to planting fruitful trees and plants to alleviate world hunger, combat global warming, strengthen communities, and improve the surrounding air, soil, and water. FTPF and Dreyer's Fruit Bars are planting orchards across the country in a collaborative program called Communities Take Root (CTR). Through this exciting program, communities compete in a nation-wide vote to win a complete community orchard. Applications are now open for 2012. The first 100 qualified applicants will be in the running to win a free orchard, including orchard design, arborist expertise, and a fun community planting event. Orchard recipients also receive a free community workshop on planting, pruning and caring for fruit trees. Learn more about this grant opportunity online.
KaBOOM! is a company based in Washington D.C. Thanks to the generous support from the Dr. Pepper Snapple group, KaBOOM! is currently offering a variety of grants to individuals and communities wishing to create or improve a playspace within their neighborhood. The mission of KaBOOM! is to create great playspaces through the participation and leadership of communities with the goal of providing a place to play within walking distance of every child in America. Spruce grants of $750 are being awarded to communities this year who are planning to make their existing playgrounds cleaner, safer, and more inviting. The Let’s Play Spruce grants are designed to reward communities that have recently maintained and “spruced” up their playspaces. Keeping a playspace clean and well-maintained is essential for a child’s safety and enjoyment. Find out more information about KaBOOM! grant opportunities.
Conferences and Workshops
The American Community Gardening Association’s 33rd annual conference, Community Gardening on the Cutting Edge, will be held in San Francisco, California. Check out the ACGA website to find out more about this opportunity.
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JOIN US in COLORADO! The education team at NGA will be presenting GAME: Grow, Ask, Move & Eat—our latest curriculum unit that gets your students working in the garden! Rendezvous in the Rockies, hosted by the Colorado Foundation for Agriculture, the National AITC Conference will be held in Fort Collins, Colorado, in 2012. More than 400 enthusiastic educators and administrators from across the nation will converge to share resources, lessons, and innovations promoting the importance of agriculture in everyone’s lives. For more information see the full conference bulletin online.
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Schoolyard gardens and habitats provide excellent opportunities for cross-curricular learning while fostering awareness of the environment, wildlife, nutrition, life skills, and gardening. This workshop is designed to introduce teachers to the benefits of schoolyard garden programs that incorporate direct links to classroom curriculum. Participants will learn practical information on laying the groundwork for successful programs, visit local schoolyard gardens and receive feedback and advice from the teachers that realized them; and take home curriculum resources and plant material! In addition, onsite participants will also gain exclusive access to the newly developed online course materials, presentations, and discussion information. This online course was designed and developed through a partnership with the National Gardening Association (NGA), the leader in plant-based educational resources, materials and grants. NGA’s expertise in grants and funding, curriculum, volunteer recruitment and maintenance, as well as many other areas necessary for school gardening success are well-known. In addition, participants of the course will receive an exclusive discount for materials and resources from the Gardening With Kids Store, a resource of NGA. More information, registration details and deadlines can be found on the website.
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Building on the information presented in the workshop “School Gardening 101," this workshop will dig more deeply into the principles and considerations of designing schoolyard gardens as well as the tips and tricks for preparing and installing successful garden projects on the school grounds. Workshop activities will include presentations on garden budgets and funding sources, visits to area school gardens, hands-on activities, and collaborative working sessions focused on design, installation, and maintaining a sustainable schoolyard. Please bring a school site plan and/or measurements of the area of the grounds to be planted. In addition, through a partnership with the National Gardening Association (NGA), the leader in plant-based educational resources, materials, and grants, NGA will provide their expertise on applying for grants and funding opportunities and other critical resources and information for school gardening success. Participants of the course will also receive an exclusive discount for materials and resources from the Gardening with Kids Store, a resource of NGA. More information, registration details and deadlines can be found on the website.
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The 20th Annual National Children and Youth Garden Symposium will be held July 19-21, 2012 in the Greater Washington DC area with headquarters at The University of Maryland. Registration is now open. For more information visit AHS online.
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