Gardening makes available opportunities for student to acquire and master basic life skills in; academic, personal, social, and community involvement. Basic skills enable learners to work independently, to interact with others, and to contribute service to the community.

SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

VEGETABLE

GARDENING FOR ALL

STEWARDSHIP

OF THE EARTH

HEALTH AND

WHOLENESS

VEGETABLE GARDENING EDUCATION

Garden Guide Handbook HOW TO ESTABLISH / MAINTAIN / HARVEST A VEGETABLE GARDEN

Our mission is to assist

garden-based groups in

establishing sustainable

vegetable gardening through

incorporating

curriculum & activities

as part of its

Community-Level Programs.

Among our objective is to

encourage people to grow,

harvest and prepare vegetables

from their own garden creating

a harvest to table experience.

BRIAN GATHRIGHT HOUSTON, TEXAS

M Y W O R L D C L A S S F L O W E R S . C O M

Garden-Based Learning Manual

Makes Available Opportunities For

Student To Acquire And

Master Basic Life Skills

Academic

Personal

Social

Community Involvement

Basic skills enable learners to work independently, to

interact with others, and to contribute

service to the community.

Introduction to Our Urban Garden-Based Learning Manual

“Seed-Time Through Harvest Program”

Brian Gathright

GARDEN GUIDE HANDBOOK SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

GARDEN EDUCATION GUIDEBOOK WITH CHILDREN & YOUTH VEGETABLE GARDENING / STEWARDSHIP OF THE EARTH / HEALTH & NUTRITION

There is an abundance of vegetable gardening based

articles and curriculum on how to start a vegetable

garden for children and youth, and organize a

community garden. There are fewer with content that

focus on URBAN GARDEN-BASED LEARNING,

which takes place both indoors as well as outdoors.

We explore the topic: “how to conduct a

comprehensive gardening program”. The “Garden

Guide Handbook” shares our approach to the city

garden experience.

The purpose

Vegetable gardening has both a therapeutic and educational value. The Garden Education Guidebook is a garden-based instruction manual to navigate through year round vegetable gardening programs; and focuses on activities for youth, children and persons with physical challenges. You will find comprehensive learning materials, which can be incorporated into an existing weekly program. It provides basic gardening information and incorporates nature themed activities, crafts as well as curriculum.

The curriculum contains elements used in Common Core Learning Standards, using the vegetable garden as the central theme to introduce natural science related topics. It includes history/social studies, science, health, basic math, and the arts to systematically develop a user friendly learning approach to gain knowledge about the world. Multimedia presentations, Crafts and games are also used as teaching tools to bring together a garden based curriculum.

The Garden Education Guidebook contains core curriculum and activities that connects with urban gardening programs. The curriculum contains garden-based learning exercises in: *Natural Science *Math *Language Arts *Social Studies *Health

Vegetables gardening programs reaches wide audiences from school gardens, afterschool youth organizations, residents at housing complexes, persons in assisted living and other institutions may benefit from the information this guide. It is organized into a series of lesson based on nutrition and vegetable from the garden.

Background

The garden education guidebook was developed to be a template to guide in future programming for a faith based community elementary school aged children’s department, located in Houston, Texas.

The concept was to create an activity driven curriculum that mirror the pattern used in the adult department. Within its’ goals was to develop curricula that would expand the users range of knowledge and socialization skills in a meaningful way.

The method was to form a pilot program with a focus group, using vegetable gardening as a teaching tool.

Several pilot workshops were conducted, and knowledge gained in the experience, personal skills and vocational training lead to the development of the guide.

Our mission is to assist organizations who incorporate sustainable vegetable gardening as part of its

Community-Level Programs.

Among our objective is to encourage people to grow, harvest and prepare vegetables from their own garden

creating a harvest to table experience.

“Seed Time Through Harvest”

Brian Gathright – Director

Brian Gathright

GARDEN GUIDE HANDBOOK SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

GARDEN EDUCATION GUIDEBOOK WITH CHILDREN & YOUTH VEGETABLE GARDENING / STEWARDSHIP OF THE EARTH / HEALTH & NUTRITION

Vegetable Garden-Based Learning makes available the opportunities for student to acquire and master basic life skills in; academic, personal, social, and community involvement. Vegetable gardening programs teaches basic vocational skills, which enable learners:

To work independently

To interact with others

To contribute service to the community

Garden education is not a list of disconnected topics; it is a logical collection of information, with interconnecting concepts, and a variety of content is taught.

School garden provides a natural forum for cross-disciplinary connections, enables fluid learning across the curriculum, and supports a variety of learning styles and abilities. Within the school environment, a garden offers a concrete platform to apply science and math learning goals mandated by most state standards.

Special Needs students as well as Gifted and groups can all be engaged in appropriate levels of investigations and activities in the vegetable garden.

THE MANUAL CONSISTS OF THREE ELEMENTS

The “Seed Time Through Harvest” Guidebook is organized into three components; together they make the core curriculum. There is a scripted section in the form of lesson plans that may be tailored to your gardening group goals; based on the type of program, facility and capability.

THE THREE COMPONETS

VEGETABLE GARDENING

STEWARDSHIP OF THE EARTH

HEALTH & NUTRITION

Garden-Based Learning

Seedtime Through Harvest Vegetable Garden

Garden-Based Learning enriches the participants in a Vegetable gardening programs the academic content will help prepare students for the workplace, it further educates, orientate student for job training, and strengthen their awareness of community responsibility.

Vegetable Gardening

Health & Wholeness

Stewardship

of The Earth

URBAN GARDEN-BASED LEARNING

TAKES PLACE IN BOTH

OUTDOORS AS WELL AS INDOORS

Brian Gathright

GARDEN GUIDE HANDBOOK SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

GARDEN EDUCATION GUIDEBOOK WITH CHILDREN & YOUTH VEGETABLE GARDENING / STEWARDSHIP OF THE EARTH / HEALTH & NUTRITION

The vegetable garden serves as both a therapeutic and an educational environment

The function of Garden is to demonstrate how to

grow, identify, observe, maintain and harvest

crops. The curriculum is incorporated to this garden

learning lab which applies math and natural science

based learning. The concept is designed for an

outdoor space, but it can be modified for indoors due

to challenges in urban settings, and if there is no

space available. There are DIY gardening projects

that may rectify those issues included.

Community gardeners as well as organic

gardening groups’ primary goal are to produce crops

for local food projects; their functions include

establishing maintaining and harvesting crops. Their

role is to produce crops, which is part of the local food

culture movement, which is being celebrated. This is a

harvest to table concept. The groups in general

consist of people with a highly developed knowledge

of the mechanics of gardening; and the groups

sometimes share gardening information with others

who are interested in advancing their skills.

Vegetable gardening programs function in the same

manner as the organic movement, but their primary

purpose is gardening as an activity. The goal is to

offers instructional information to further support

teaching life skills. The curriculum includes garden

demonstrations on how to grow, identify, observe,

maintain and harvest crops. There is usually a

healthy food choice or conservation element attached

to the program.

NOTE: Organic Gardening Programs offer the

greatest health and environmental benefit, it does not

involve the use of any chemicals that may be harmful

to people or pets. The handbook is a guide for novice

in the garden and leaders with limited experience in

gardening programs. For additional resources consult

your Agriculture Extension Office, Master Gardener

Association, or locally operated garden center.

They have information and advice on controlling

weeds and pest in your area.

Organic vegetable gardening is a discipline within

gardening and possibly the safest of all

gardening methods to control insects and

feeding the soil. It takes a greater level of skill

and time investment in order to establish and

maintain the organic garden in the urban setting;

it also requires an investment of extra

space for composting materials.

Below is a page link to www.LETSMOVE.gov you will find basic info on

“Organizing a Community Garden”.

The information found in point #5 of the document is step by step guide

to getting started:

http://www.letsmove.gov./sites/letsmove.gov/files/pdfs/TAKE_ACTION_COMMUNITY_LEADERS.pdf

Brian Gathright

GARDEN GUIDE HANDBOOK SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

GARDEN EDUCATION GUIDEBOOK WITH CHILDREN & YOUTH VEGETABLE GARDENING / STEWARDSHIP OF THE EARTH / HEALTH & NUTRITION

The indoor laboratory is where all activity begins. This component is intended to be the information center for all activities and instructions in an urban based garden program. This is the one constant meeting place where review and introduction to new information initially takes place, from the outdoor laboratory to the nutrition station.

A portion of garden-based learning takes place indoors through stewardship of the earth. This therapeutic and educational environment brings awareness of conservation and natural resource issues, similar to Earth Day on a weekly basis. It digs deep by exploring; caring for the earth, with garden-based activities, games informative work sheets and DIY arts & crafts. Some topics include; environmental awareness, conservation, plant scientist that made a difference, and caring for the Earth.

A POSITIVE MESSAGE & ACTIVE LIFESTYLE

“When we work to instill an appreciation for physical fitness in our people, we do more than honor an age-old tradition -- we take a critical step toward ensuring the prospect of a long and healthy life”.

“And First Lady Michelle Obama's Lets Move! Initiative continues to inspire a rising generation to eat healthily and get plenty of physical activity so they can grow up strong and pursue their dreams.”

Barak Obama-

President of the United States

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST PROGRAM

CLICK ON TO THE LINK TO THE: www.MyWorldClassFlowers.com web site.

http://www.myworldclassflowers.com/seed-time-through-harvest--starting-a-gardening-program.html web page

Brian Gathright

GARDEN GUIDE HANDBOOK SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

GARDEN EDUCATION GUIDEBOOK WITH CHILDREN & YOUTH VEGETABLE GARDENING / STEWARDSHIP OF THE EARTH / HEALTH & NUTRITION

Health and Nutrition Education possess a natural connect in garden-base learning. The background information observes the physical and nutritional needs in order to maintain our bodies.

The theme is twofold; it gives support to the message that good health is maintained through physical activity and the many benefits eating a diet of fresh healthy foods.

One of the topics features a look at the food system and things that are needed to support it. The food system explains the steps food takes to gets from the farm to our table.

In this farm to table concept students will taste garden fresh vegetables from local sources. The curriculum uses elements from editions of the “U S D A-Dietary Guidelines” and the “LetMove.gov” to create the core of the nutrition & health education lessons. Topics include the following:

The Skeletal System

Vital Organs in Our Bodies

Vegetables Culinary Background

The Food Groups and nutrients

Habits that can keep you HEALTHY

In addition to planting and caring for the vegetable garden, students explore the science of health and nutrition.

To reinforce the lessons students are given opportunities to prepare and eat fresh nutritious snacks from foods that are available in local gardens.

Garden Guide Hand-Book available soon

GARDEN GUIDE HAND-BOOK: SEED TIME THROUGH HARVEST

The information and articles presented in the “Be Healthy & Be Happy” [health and nutrition] sections are not intended nor implied to be a

substitute for professional medical advice.

It is provided as a guide to promote nutrition and healthy choices and presented for

educational purposes only.