Curriculum & Activity Guides

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The Growing Classroom – Garden and Nutrition Activity Guide

Revised for 2007! This award-winning resource book for educators contains 480 pages of science, math, and language arts activities that you can do with your students in the garden. Activities are aligned with California Science Content Standards. Topics include soil, plants, cycles, ecology, weather, nutrition, and food systems. Also includes team-building and sensory exploration activities, organic gardening skills, and information on how to create and sustain a successful school garden program. 480 pages

Sample Lessons:

Space Travelers - Students work in small groups to explore the composition of soil
Six of One, Half Dozen of the Other - Groups of students use multiple senses to find and classify contrasting objects in the natural environment

View Full Table of Contents – View Front and Back Covers

Growing Classroom lessons that support the CA State Science Standards. Kindergarten, First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth

Life Lab offers a one or two day training using the The Growing Classroom. The Growing Classroom: An Introduction to Garden Based Learning Educator Workshop.

Want to preview or borrow a copy of The Growing Classroom? The California Healthy Kids Resource Center has copies for Californian's to borrow. Learn more

Kids' Garden Activity Cards – 40 Fun Indoor and Outdoor Activities and Games

With 40 interactive activities and games divided into five categories, Kids' Garden encourages children to engage with the outdoors and appreciate the green world around them. Each double-sided card has step-by-step instructions with colorful collage artwork. A great way for budding green- fingered gardeners to plant, investigate, learn and experiment! –40 cards plus 8 page leaflet • Box 8.5 x 6.5 x 2 inches; Card 6.25 x 8 inches AGES 8+

Kids' Garden is a winner of the following awards:

* Independent Publisher Book Awards, Gold Medal: Children's Interactive Category

* Parents' Choice Award: Books, Gold Medal

* NAPPA–National Parenting Publications Award, Honors Winner

* Tillywig Toy Award: Books, Brain Child Award

View the table of contents of our Kids' Garden Activity Cards

Click to view Root View Cup, Chive Hairdos, and Stone Paperweights Sample Activity Cards

Sowing the Seeds of Wonder – Discovering the Garden in Early Childhood Education

Through hands-on activities preschool-age children will engage all of their senses as they discover the joys of gardening. Sowing the Seeds of Wonder is an educator guidebook that provides insight and lessons for educators to help students develop a lifelong connection to the outdoors. Lessons guide young students to dig into the soil; observe birds, insects, and other critters in the garden; and enjoy the tastes of fresh fruits and vegetables they plant, harvest, and prepare. 120 pages.

Sowing the Seeds of Wonder Includes:

Getting started information – tried and true tips for launching an educational garden.
Twenty-eight gardening activities for children ages 2-5, featuring garden explorations; soil, plant, and animal studies; and harvest, cooking, and art projects.
Gardening how to's: basic gardening techniques, plant lists, and design guides for creating and maintaining a thriving garden, as well as specific techniques for involving young children.
Educator resources: garden-related songs, ECE garden case studies, and suggested literature lists.

I love this book! I intended to browse through it, but got hooked and read it from cover to cover. Early childhood educators will discover a treasure trove of interdisciplinary projects that will kindle the flame of curiosity inside every child. – Sharon Lovejoy, author of Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots

Life Lab Science K-5 Garden Based Curriculum

Life Lab Science Program offers teacher friendly, hands-on units that children can dig into! Recognized by the Smithsonian Institute as an “outstanding curriculum, ” Life Lab Science is a core curriculum which integrates earth, life, and physical science concepts within the context of a Living Laboratory school garden. Inquiry-oriented lessons, both outdoors and in the classroom, encourage students to ask questions and explore multiple solutions. Unit topics, such as soil, water, weather, plants, and animals use a developmental approach based on students' prior knowledge. Assessment is embedded in the activities and extensions are included.

Life Lab Science is garden based and grade level specific (K-5). Teacher instructional manuals include pre and post assessment, unit planners, parent letters, and suggested connections to language arts, math, and social studies. View the complete curriculum (K-5) Scope and Sequence to learn how each unit of Life Lab Science supports science process skills and life, earth and physical science concepts.

Interested in only one grade level? Grade level sampler packets and CA State Science Standards matrices are linked to from grade level descriptions below.

First grade – third grade curriculum is sent with one copy of the lab book. Kindergarten, fourth and fifth grade curriculum come with lab pages in their appendices.

Additional Lab Books for grades first – third and Spanish Blackline Masters for all grade levels may be purchased separately. View sample Spanish Lab Book pages.

Download Life Lab Science lesson matrix that links science lessons to gardening skills.

Adopting a Garden Based Science Program at your School? Have Life Lab train your teachers. Life Lab has trained tens of thousands of teachers in over 1,500 locations. Life Lab Science Curriculum Teacher Workshops

Great Explorations – Kindergarten

Use your senses as built-it tools for exploration of the physical properties of soil, water, plants, garden animals, and more. Culminate units of study with garden celebrations.

Kinder Black Line Master mostly consists of parent letters – 10 pages

Kindergarten Sampler Packet
Kindergarten Science Standards

Earth is Home – First Grade Teacher Resource Manual

Investigate the concepts of diversity and cycles while studying the differences among organisms. Themes include: plant life, soil, weather, and garden creatures.

1st Grade Black Line Master – parent letter and student lab book worksheets – 104 pages

First Sampler Packet
First Science Standards

Change Around Us – 2nd Grade Teacher Resource Manual

Observe and investigate the concept of change by measuring the conditions that affect living and non-living things such as plants, water, food chains, resource conservation, and air.

2nd Grade Black Line Master – parent letter and student lab book worksheets – 118 pages

Second Sampler Packet
Second Science Standards

How Things Work – 3rd Grade Teacher Resource Manual

Investigate concepts such as: garden tools as simple machines, structure and function of plant parts, garden animals, and soil.

3rd Grade Black Line Master – parent letter and student lab book worksheets – 190 pages

Third Sampler Packet
Third Science Standards

Connections – 4th Grade Module Set

Explore the interactions and physical properties of a habitat or ecosystem while applying the skills necessary for science investigation of water, nutrient cycles, food webs, and light. 4th grade consists of 8 modules with lab pages and a teacher guide.

4th Grade Black Line Master – parent letter and student lab book worksheets – 300 pages

Fourth Sampler Packet
Fourth Science Standards

Change Over Time – 5th Grade Module Set

Study the adaptations and evolution of living organisms and their interactions with climate, soil, plants, animals, and seasons. 5th grade consists of 8 modules with lab pages and a teacher guide.

5th Grade Black Line Master – parent letter and student lab book worksheets – 268 pages

Fifth Sampler Packet
Fifth Science Standards

Other Life Lab Publications

Maize Activity Guide for 5th to 8th Grades

Maize is designed to help children understand what agriculture is and why it is important. Activities help raise awareness of the diversity of local and national food production, introduce components of farming, and demonstrate basic ecological concepts related to growing food sustainably.

Download the Diversity Game lesson from Maize

Popcorn Activity Guide for Primary Grades

Popcorn is designed to help children understand what agriculture is and why it is important. Activities help raise awareness of the diversity of local and national food production, introduce components of farming, and demonstrate basic ecological concepts related to growing food sustainably.

Science Exploration Units

1st to 4th grade Science Exploration Units – Plants, Soils, Pollinators, Habitats Created with lessons from Life Lab Science and the Growing Classroom our Science Exploration Units are garden themed based and aligned to the California State Science Standards. Themes for each grade are: 1st Grade – Plant Adaptations, 2nd Grade – Soil Studies, 3rd Grade – Garden Pollinators, 4th Grade – Garden Habitats. 4 lesson packets with 6 lessons per packet

Science Exploration Units are available as free individual downloads as well.

Getting Started: A Guide for Starting a School Garden

Download Getting Started (1.8MB)

Download Getting Started En Espanol Comenzando (5.2MB)

The Life Lab Science Program distilled their years of world-wide school garden experience into a concise 50-page guide that asks and answers most questions you need to consider for creating an outdoor classroom garden. Items covered include your garden’s purpose; school staff, volunteers, and students; connecting with curriculum; site selection and design; theme gardens; fund-raising; public awareness; and more. Get this guide if you are thinking about starting a garden for your school or program, then move on to The Growing Classroom and Life Lab Science. This publication is available free as a PDF download, see link below.

California school teachers may request a free school garden resource packet which includes a hardcopy of Getting Started. Email gardengrantQA@cde.ca.gov to request your free packet.

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