Workshops & Courses

Growing Minds: Garden-Based Learning from the Ground Up

Dates: July 26-30, 2010, 8am-noon
Cost: TBA
Credit: 1 credit will be available from UW-Madison.
Place: The Kids' Garden at Troy Gardens (500 block of Troy Drive, near Warner Park)
Instructor: Nathan Larson, Education Director, Community GroundWorks at Troy Gardens

This 5-day, 20-hour course is designed for K-12 teachers and community educators who are interested in building skills in the areas of youth garden education, development, and management. This course will emphasize an inquiry-based, hands-on approach to garden-based learning. Course topics will include youth garden design and construction, funding and resources, recommended tools and equipment, organic gardening methods, cooking in an outdoor garden kitchen, garden-based nutrition, nature study and games, earth art, chickens in the garden, program evaluation, and the role of youth gardening in the sustainable agriculture movement. Course instruction will take place outdoors in the award-winning Kids' Garden at Troy Gardens. Please bring sunscreen, drinking water, and appropriate clothing for the weather (e.g., hats, sunglasses, rain jacket). This course will give registration priority to Madison-based educators and has a maximum enrollment of 15 teachers.

Garden-Based Education Workshops

We provide workshops on a variety of garden-based education topics for schools upon request. Contact Nathan Larson, Education Director, for more information (240-0409, education@troygardens.org).