Say Yes! to a Garden in Every School: Green Thumbs Growing Kids

Say Yes! To School Food GardensSay Yes! To School Food Gardens

Feb. 18/2015

Ontario Edible Education Network Webinar

Green Thumbs Growing Kids

Sunday Harrison, Founder and Program Director at Green Thumbs Growing Kids

Collaborator in the Imagine a Garden in Every School campaign

Contact:[email protected]:www.kidsgrowing.cahttp://agardenineveryschool.ca

Our vision: Healthy Communities and

Learning Gardens Everywhere!

Our Mission: To empower urban children, youth and

families to learn about, grow and prepare fresh foods, cultivated in an

environmentally sustainable manner, in hands-on programs

timeline

ALSO:•Monthly garden education workdays for volunteers•Partners at new Regent Park greenhouse (nearly completed)•2015 starting social enterprise, youth gardening for wages

School-Community garden model

Curriculum-focused from Sept-June.Produce goes to lunchroom/classrooms

All-ages engagement in summer (day camps, youth groups, youth jobs, family drop-in evenings)

Surplus produce to farmers market or food bank/ community kitchen

Who does the work?*• Paid staff hired through grants and wage subsidies – one

program leader for the Children’s Program and one for the Youth Program (Urban Roots Youth), 4-6 youth in summer. Programs rotate through gardens.

• Volunteers – trained, police-checked• Interns & practicum students from various college/university

programs; secondary Co-op students*besides the children

Winchester PS: SK-8. 11,000 sq. ft. Full sun, outdoor classroom, rainwater catchment, food beds, naturalized beds, fruit trees and shrubs, composting, shade trees

Rose Ave PSShady unused corner transformed!

Less than 6 hrs sun/day, but produces a high volume of greens & herbs.

Sprucecourt PSLean-to greenhouse extends the growing season

Salad Celebration in June at each school

Building raised beds from Earth Blocks, a low-carbon alternative to wood and concrete. Students from grades 4-8 built 9 raised beds in 3 schools in this project funded by Live Green Toronto.

projects

Kinder-GARDEN!

• 8 teachers in 5 schools involved in pilot project – we supplied materials & lessons, teachers ran weekly programs on their own/with volunteers

• Teachers met twice to share their learning. Result is 70pp book available on our website

composting

Environmental High-Skills Majors Co-op students (Grade 11 & 12) help maintain and teach composting

Summer arts, gamesFlower pounding, Stick Passing game

Spring HarvestGarlic, salad greens, peas, sorrel, red currant

Fall HarvestPotatoes, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers, melons, squash, sweet potatoes, herbs

Indoor programs:Stone Soup,Seed Packaging,Design your Own Garden

School Garden Day

• May 22, 2015 (4th Friday in May)• Launched at Castlebridge PS in Mississauga in 2013• 26 schools in 2014, representing over 2,000 students• Register on website, receive certificate for

participating

Local school garden entrepreneurs

Leila Mireskandari has started a small business using her own indoor/outdoor curricula developed at her daughter’s school. She plans to expand to new schools. See this video and visit kidsgrowingcity.ca for more details.

Elin Marley runs multiple school food garden programs in downtown east-end schools. She’s developed her own curriculum, and schools pay her for her time. She explains more in this video and check out her blog at seedlingstories.wordpress.com