One School’s Garden Question Responses

I have found that it is challenging to get individual teachers to answer these questions, and I have learned that asking them to work together as a teaching team works really well. Below are the answers from one school’s teaching teams to the first three garden questions.

Which plants have been successful?

• Lettuces, kale, tomatoes beets
• Carrots, lettuces, broccoli, radish, chard, kale, squashes, cherry tomatoes, fava beans, snap peas
• Tomatoes, fava beans, lettuces, carrots, radish, potatoes, zucchini
• Fava beans, chard
• Tomatoes, chard, carrots, potatoes, beets, fava beans, lettuces, broccoli, cucumbers
• Lettuces, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, beets, broccoli, pumpkins!, fava beans, radishes, kale, chard, cauliflower

Which plants didn’t work at all?

• Carrots—because of their growth period
• Soy beans, large tomatoes
• Nothing listed
• Nothing listed 
• Cauliflower, soybeans, pumpkins (too cold?)
• Celery—took forever but finally yielded two huge plants.  Our garlic was small and not so good.
• Group Discussion10/15:  Soy beans, large tomatoes, cauliflower, dino kale, corn

Which plants do you never tire of growing?

• Lettuces, kale
• Carrots, fava, snap peas
• Carrots, potatoes “I love having the kids dig for potatoes”
• Carrots and tomatoes. “The children love to just pick and eat them”
• Tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, lettuce
• Carrots, beets, tomatoes, lettuce
• Group Discussion 10/15: Herbs, cilantro, thyme, sage; carrot, snap peas, kale, lettuces, beets, onion, garlic, squash, fruit trees, broccoli: baby, purple, broccolini; sun flowers, potatoes, berries (blue!), cucumber, kale, chard, pumpkin

How to Begin Creating Cooking Links in an Integrated Food Curriculum

When planning any hands-on cooking for young learners I always begin with a set of questions. Below is the set I have asked over and over again, of myself, my colleagues, and educators and administrators in programs that have asked me to create curriculum for them. The answers to these questions help me to think about what cooking projects might work best meeting the faculty where they are in their own cooking skills.

When thinking about hands-on cooking with the children,
tell me a little bit about…

• Which cooking projects have been successful?
• Which cooking projects have not worked at all?
• Which cooking projects do you never tire of preparing?
• What concerns do you have about food allergies in your program?

How to Begin Creating Garden Links in an Integrated Food Curriculum

For the next couple of weeks, I am going to lead you through an example of how I create a linked garden, cooking, and classroom curriculum. It is my hope that this will inspire you to begin creating your own.

When planning any garden I always begin with a set of questions. Below is the set of questions I have asked over and over again, of myself, my colleges, and educators and administrators in programs that have asked me to create curriculum for them. The answers to these questions help me to think about what the garden plan I’m designing might grow into.

When thinking about the all school garden, tell me a little about…

• Which plants have been successful?
• Which plants didn’t work at all?
• Which plants do you never tire of growing?
• Please describe any garden to table rituals that you already have in place.
• An example of one that I observed was using the apples from the school orchard being used as a topping for waffles in one class and applesauce in another.
• Please describe any garden to table rituals you wish you could create.
• An example from my own experience is growing Rainbow Inca Corn and the grinding of the corn into meal to make corn bread.

What Kind of School Garden Might Work for You?

Today’s picture is of a Story Garden, and as you take a moment and sit in this garden, perhaps you can day-dream about what the garden in your own program might one day look like!

On Saturday October 22 I presented at the Painting the Future Conference held at Foothill College which focused on the importance of children being outside! The Keynote Speaker was Eric Nelson who is the director of The Outdoor Classroom Project. Eric’s address “Restoring the Wonder and Joy of Childhood through the Outdoor Classroom” was a passionate talk from the heart. He believes as I do, and research supports this, that children need unstructured time to explore the outdoor world. Teachers are facilitators, and environment should be thoughtfully set-up to inspire young learners. It was really interesting to learn from Eric, that children spend less than 2% of their outdoor time on structures. Which makes me wonder—what else is in the outdoor environment in your program that sparks the curiosity and imagination of the young child?

My workshop was about Sprouting Food Memories in Early Learning from Garden to Outdoor Kitchen, and I focused on inspiring educators to think about where they might tuck a garden into their program, or expand the one they already have. For the last nine years it had been my great fortune to have had access to gardens to support my work with children both as a chef and an educator.

Apples: The Literacy Link

Every autumn I pull from the bookshelf my picture books on apples. Curling up with the children we visit with them like they are long lost friends. I understand the young learners in my class will deepen their knowledge of apples by tasting, picking, cooking, drawing, and hearing stories. Below is a list of my favorites that you can probably find in your local library. Happy Reading!

Apple Picking Time by Michele Benoit Slawson and illustrated by Deborah Logan Ray
The Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree by Gail Gibbons
Apple Farmer Annie by Monica Wellington
Apples and Pumpkins by Anne Rockwell and illustrated by Lizzy Rockwell
Apples, Apples, Apples written and illustrated by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace
Apples by Gail Gibbons
Bring Me Some Apples and I’ll Make You a Pie by Robbin Gourley
How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman
The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall and illustrated by Shari Halpern
Apples to Oregon by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by Nancy Carpenter