School Gardening Conference 2013

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Solving Problems Through School Gardening

School Gardening ConferenceJune 29, 2013

Dear Educators,

School gardening comes with challenges and rewards. Whether you have come to find solutions to gardening problems, or to get ideas for student problem-solving activities in the garden, we welcome you to our 15th school gardening conference. This year’s session leaders will share gardening success stories while offering practical ideas for managing and using school gardens to teach all ages and subjects. We are very pleased to have keynote speaker Sharon Gamson Danks, brought to you by a generous gift from the Hitchcock Design Group, presenting her experiences in transforming schoolyards into green learning environments and inspiring you to keep growing as a school garden educator. Enjoy the conference!

Sincerely,

Katherine JohnsonTeacher and Student Programs DirectorChicago Botanic Garden

Table of Contents

Keynote .................................................2

Session Descriptions ..............................2

Concurrent Session 1 ............................3

Quick Reference Session Guide .........5-6

Concurrent Session 2 .............................7

Ask the Expert Panel ..............................8

Concurrent Session 3 .............................9

The Chicago Botanic Garden thanks

Whole Foods in Deerfield, Illinois, and the

Whole Kids Foundation for their generous

donation of the recycle bags and snacks

for the teachers. We also would like to

thank the following organizations for raffle

donations: Lee Valley Tools Ltd., Lowe’s

Home Improvement in Northbrook,

Montana Correctional Enterprises,

Pasquesi Home and Garden, Renee’s

Garden Seeds, W. Atlee Burpee & Co.,

Wooly Pocket Corporation.


2013 School Gardening Conference

Session Descriptions

Keynote SpeakerNichols Hall 8:45 – 9:30 a.m.

Sharon Gamson Danks, author, Asphalt to Ecosystems: Design Ideas for Schoolyard Transformation; co-founder, International School Grounds Alliance; principal, Bay Tree Design, Inc.

Creating and Sustaining Vibrant School Gardens and Green Schoolyards Schools around the world are using their grounds to teach outdoors, enrich play, and improve neighborhood ecology, and children’s well-being. Author Sharon Danks will present a vibrant slideshow about the growing school garden and green schoolyard movements, including practical ideas for creating comfortable, enjoyable, sustainable environments that foster community stewardship.

BiographySharon Gamson Danks, MLA-MCP, is an environmental planner and principal of Bay Tree Design in Berkeley, California. Over the last 14 years, her professional work and passion have focused on transforming school grounds into vibrant public spaces that reflect and enhance local ecology, nurture children as they learn and play, and engage the community. An accomplished schoolyard researcher and an advocate of ecological design, Danks has traveled the world to study hundreds of school grounds. She applies this international experience to her work, and celebrates it in her recent book, Asphalt to Ecosystems: Design Ideas for Schoolyard Transformation, which won a 2012 Honor Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects. A trailblazer in the green schoolyard movement, Danks is co-founder of the International School Grounds Alliance, a global network of organizations and professionals working to enrich children’s learning and play on school grounds. In 2011, Danks conceived of and directed a major international green schoolyard conference that included participants from seven countries. She has facilitated green schoolyard master-planning processes for more than two dozen schools. In addition to Asphalt to Ecosystems, Danks is coauthor of the Green Schoolyard Resource Directory for the San Francisco Bay Area, and a contributor to Landscape Architecture Magazine, Orion, and Green Teacher. She is also the mother of two expert playground testers.

Break: Book Signing and Sales in Krehbiel Gallery 9:30 – 9:45 a.m.

Hitchcock Design Group has a proven approach, exceptional resources and specialized experience creating better places® to live, work, play, heal and learn by providing consistently valuable planning and landscape architecture. Please visit the Hitchcock booth in Nichols Hall to learn more about their expertise in designing spaces for children, schools, and communities.

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Concurrent Session I 9:45 – 11 a.m.

Fresh from the Farm: Planting Seeds for Future GenerationsNichols Hall

Cassandra Orr, program assistant/garden educator, Seven Generations AheadShari Brown, program associate, Seven Generations AheadSydney Weydeme, Americorps Service Member/FFF Educator

Join us for an engaging session on SGA’s farm-to-school curricula which aligns with Common Core State Standards, and links the garden to the classroom. Through interactive group activities, attendees will participate in a lesson demonstration and will understand the benefits of school gardens. Participants will walk away with resources that include activities, funding prospects, professional development, and networking opportunities.

Tips and Tricks: Ideas for the School GardenFairchild Room

Emily Dawson, junior high science teacher, Riverview Grade School, East Peoria, Illinois

Learn the basics of creating an outdoor classroom to increase learning in the natural environment, along with affordable (zero budget) tips for transforming any schoolyard space. Grant-writing tips will be distributed.

Andrea Briney, horticulture and landscape design pathway teacher, The Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences

This session is focused on challenges and lessons learned through an educator’s last four years at the City of Chicago’s largest school garden. Briney will share past experiences, project nuances, and best practices of planning and maintaining a school garden, through a brief presentation highlighting the ten-acre school vegetable and more than five-acre ornamental gardens.

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Signs of NatureLinnaeus Room

Barbara Hocking, early childhood consultant

Use American Sign Language to learn a new way to communicate about gardening and nature. Participate in a hands-on session for people who work with children who need extra input strategies. American Sign Language for objects and activities from nature will be introduced.

Eat What You Grow: A School Garden Food Safety Manual for Chicago Public Schools…and Beyond!Auditorium

Moderator: Eliza Fournier, manager, school and community gardening, Chicago Botanic GardenPanelists: Dan Schnitzer, director of sustainability and operation, Academy for Global Citizenship, Drew Thomas, Chicago Public Schools, Jean Saunders, Chartwells Thompson Hospitality, and Connor Butkus, program manager, Family Farmed

Partners have been working to pave the way for food grown in school gardens to be served in school cafeterias in Chicago. This panel session will preview the guide that will make this possibility a reality! Hear about the manual guidelines for safe growing and handling that will give participants the tools to understand food safety practices and implement garden-to-cafeteria programs in their schools.

Break 11 – 11:15 a.m.

Resource Tables will be available in Nichols Hall.Book Signing: Sharon Dank’s book Asphalts to Ecosystems will be available for purchase. Don’t forget to get your copy signed in Krehbiel Gallery.

8 – 8:30 a.m. Registration, Check-in, Networking, Coffee, and Rolls Nichols Hall

8:30 – 8:45 a.m.

Welcome and IntroductionsKathy Johnson, teacher and student programs director, Chicago Botanic GardenNichols Hall

8:45 – 9:30 a.m.

9:30 – 9:45 a.m.

Breakout Sessions Burnstein Hall Fairchild Room Linnaeus Room

9:45 – 11 a.m.

11 – 11:15 a.m. Break and Resource Tables in Nichols Hall, Book Sales and Signing in Krehbiel Gallery

Fresh from the Farm: Planting Seeds for Future GenerationsCassandra Orr & Shari Brown, Seven Generation AheadSydney Weydeme, AmeriCorps

Optional Lunch in Nichols Hall & Green Youth Farm market open. Visit greenhouses and gardens.12:30 – 1 p.m.

Keynote Speaker Sharon Gamson DanksNichols HallBreak Book Sales and Book Signing in Krehbiel Gallery

Quick Reference Session Guide

Alternative Location

Eat What You GrowEliza Fournier, Chicago Botanic Garden; Jean Saun-ders, Chartwells Thompson; Dan Schnitzer, Academy for Global Citizenship; Drew Thomas, Chicago Public Schools; Connor Butkus, Family Farmed

Auditorium

11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Cultivating Change: Nutrition and Food Access CurriculumAnna Barnes & Rebecca Calendo CLOCC

Gardens Inspired by Art and LiteratureShannon Greve, Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust and Jenna Leitner, Ruiz SchoolJacqueline Christen & Izora Lewis, Glenside Public Library District

Sustaining a School Gardening ProgramBilly Burdett, Kelly Perez, Michele Schultz, Natalie G. Heineman Smart Love Preschool

Easy Inquiry in a Garden Kathy Johnson, Chicago Botanic GardenMcGinley Pavilion and English Walled Garden

Ask the Expert PanelJennifer Schwarz-BallardNichols Hall

1 – 2 p.m.Ask the Expert PanelJennifer Schwarz-BallardNichols Hall



2:15 – 3:30 p.m.

Raffle, Evaluations, and CPDUs in Auditorium3:30 – 4 p.m.

2 – 2:15 p.m. Break

Gardening for All Alicia Green, Chicago Botanic GardenBuehler Enabling Garden

Organizing Your School Garden TeamKristin LoVerde & Stephanie BirdOpenlands

Connecting Students with FoodAmber Gribben, Urban Worm Girl, Elena Marre, The Kids’ Table, Tim Magner, Truck Farm Chicago

Connecting Kids to the GardenRebecca Littman Cathy Taylor Beth Drucker Wilmette SchoolBoyer Room

Tips and Tricks: Ideas for the School Garden Emily Dawson Riverview Grade School, Peoria, IllinoisAndrea Briney The Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences

Signs of NatureBarbara Hocking Early Childhood Consultant


2013 School Gardening Conference

Concurrent Session 2 11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Cultivating Change: Nutrition and Food Access CurriculumNichols Hall

Anna Barnes, school programs manager, Consortium to Lower Obesity in Chicago Children (CLOCC)Rebecca Calendo, health educator, Consortium to Lower Obesity in Chicago Children (CLOCC)

Learn about CLOCC’s Cultivating Change project-based curriculum that helps students explore the connections between the food system, nutrition, and our local and global communities. Participants will receive an instructor’s guide and student handouts.

Gardens Inspired by Art and LiteratureFairchild Room

Shannon Greve, youth and family programs manager, Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation TrustJenna Leitner, teacher, Irma C. Ruiz School

With inspiration from the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and the prairie landscape architects, fifth grade students from Ruiz School in Chicago created a plan for a school garden. Presenters will provide insight into their collaboration, the planning process including their research on the topic, the results and benefits of the program, and ways to improve the program.

Jacqueline Christen, youth services librarian, Glenside Public Library District Izora Lewis, youth services librarian, Glenside Public Library District

Are you looking to promote literacy while increasing student involvement? Presenters will share how they planned and executed a raised-bed garden and will discuss ideas for accompanying programming and such learning activities as growing a salad–bowl garden and keeping journals.

Sustaining a School Gardening ProgramLinnaeus Room

Billy Burdett, garden designer, Forever Victory GardensKelly Perez, preschool director, Natalie G. Heineman Smart Love PreschoolMichele Schultz, preschool teacher, Natalie G. Heineman Smart Love Preschool

One of the greatest challenges in school gardening is creating a garden that will last. Learn how the Natalie G. Heineman Smart Love Preschool builds long-term sustainability into its thriving edible garden program! Hear how the school turns horticultural problems and challenges into potent learning opportunities.

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Easy Inquiry in the GardenMcGinley Pavilion

Kathy Johnson, teacher and student programs director, Chicago Botanic Garden

This session will show you how to ask a testable question and perform simple science investigations in your garden. Demonstrations of five–minute and five–day activities get students thinking about flowers, pollinators, and patterns in nature. Participants will walk to the English Walled Garden for these activities.

Lunch (Optional in Nichols Hall) 12:30 – 1 p.m.

Please feel free to wander through the gardens or Greenhouses and stop by the Green Youth Farm market stand during the lunch break.

Ask the Expert Panel 1 – 2 p.m.Nichols Hall

Moderator: Jennifer Schwarz-Ballard, Ph. D, associate vice president, education, Chicago Botanic GardenPanelists: Andy Howard, Hitchcock Designs; Sharon Danks, Bay Tree Design, Inc.; Barbara Kreski, Chicago Botanic Garden; Eliza Fournier, Chicago Botanic Garden; Melissa Matterson, Chicago Botanic Garden.

During this 60-minute forum, panel experts will help you tackle the big questions and challenges in school gardening. Here’s your chance to get advice from our experts! We invite you to submit your questions during the morning check-in period.

Break 2 – 2:15 p.m.

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Concurrent Session 3 2:15 – 3:30 p.m.

Connecting Kids to the GardenBoyer Room, Visitor Center

Rebecca Littman, principal, Central Elementary School, Wilmette, IllinoisCathy Taylor, village-wide PTO outdoor classroom representative, Wilmette District 39Beth Drucker, parent volunteer/outdoor classroom liaison, Wilmette District 39, Go Green Wilmette

From science and social studies to music and art, the school garden lends itself to a wide variety of structured and unstructured leaning opportunities for grades K through 8. Join Wilmette District 39 staff and parent volunteers in a discussion of scheduling models, hands-on experiences, and learning activities for students, staff, and families in the school garden. Participants will leave with a packet of activities and sample hands-on projects.

Organizing Your School Garden TeamFairchild Room

Kristin LoVerde, education coordinator, Openlands Stephanie Bird, education associate, Openlands

Establishing a garden team is a key component to a school gardens long-term viability. Join us to learn how to recruit, organize, and sustain your garden team. Just as soil and plants need to be cared for, so does the building and maintaining of the school garden team.

Connecting Students with Food through Cultivation, Cooking, and CompostingLinnaeus Room

Amber Gribben, owner, Urban Worm GirlElena Marre, owner, The Kids’ TableTim Magner, director, Green Sugar Press/Truck Farm Chicago

Discover how to use a school or classroom garden year-round. Lesson plans connect students with food, explore the garden life cycle, incorporate hands-on cooking projects, and manage food waste through vermicomposting.

Gardening for All Buehler Enabling Garden

Alicia Green, coordinator, Buehler Enabling Garden, Chicago Botanic Garden

Come join the staff of the Buehler Enabling Garden and learn about plants empowering students with developmental differences and the specific considerations that need to be addressed when gardening with students who have different abilities. Topics that will be covered include garden planning, choosing appropriate plant material, utilizing adaptive tools, motivating students, and applying horticultural therapy principals to improve physical, social, or emotional functioning. Participants will receive a tour of the Garden and participate in a sample activity. Session is held in the Buehler Enabling Garden outdoor classroom and is limited to 24 participants.

Raffle, Evaluation, and CPDUs: Alsdorf Auditorium 3:30 – 4 p.m.

Become a MemberAn education membership at the Chicago Botanic Garden entitles you to a 20 percent discount on teacher professional development programs and all other education courses. It also entitles you to free year-round parking at the Garden (currently $25 per car), access to education resources to borrow, a biannual teacher newsletter, and all the regular benefits of membership. Stop by the membership desk in the Visitor Center, call (847) 835-8215, or visit www.chicagobotanic.org/member to enroll or renew your membership today.

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One of the treasures of the Forest Preserve D

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Visit w

ww.chicagobotanic.org/ctl to discover

exciting learning opportunities for your students.


School Gardening ConferenceJune 29, 2013

Documents

School Gardening Conference 2013