School Garden 101 is a course for school staff (teachers, aides, cooks, health coordinators, etc.) who wish to create a school garden and tie it to classrooms and the cafeteria.  In five sessions, participants learn basic gardening skills, think through and document a school garden plan, and initiate their school garden. Each session focuses on a gardening subject (composting, soil health, growing seedlings, garden planning, insects/ diseases) and provides time and tools for school teams to plan and network with others.

The website was created to share the School Garden 101 curriculum with Extension employees and other community members who wish to engage school staff in learning how to start a school garden.  It is also a resource for schools with established gardens.  It contains sample course promotional materials, a course syllabus, detailed outlines for each of the five sessions, teacher planning tools and discussion questions, homework assignments, links to fact sheets providing essential gardening information,  links to school gardening activities and curricula, sample course evaluation forms, and a sample certificate of completion.

School Garden 101 was developed as an evening course by Marjorie Peronto (University of Maine Cooperative Extension) and Sue DeBlieck (Healthy Acadia).  Since 2010, the course has been held in Ellsworth, Machias, Bucksport and Waldoboro, Maine, reaching 72 teachers and cooks from 39 schools.

For more information about the course, please contact Marjorie Peronto, marjorie.peronto@maine.edu 1-800-287-1479 (Maine) or (207)667-8212

Promotional Materials

• Promotional flyer sample (Word)
• Registration form sample (PDF)

Course Materials (5 Sessions)

• Manual Cover 2011 (PDF)
• School Garden 101 syllabus (PDF)
• School Garden 101 syllabus (Word)
• Maine School Garden Network Website — Resources for teachers

Session #1  –  School Composting

• SG 101 Session 1 Outline and Support Materials (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 1 Outline and Support Materials (Word)
• SG 101 Session 1 Homework (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 1 Homework (Word)
• Resources
  • Home Composting
  • How Compost Happens
  • MOFGA Facts — Composting in a Back Yard or on a Small Farm
  • Composting with Redworms
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Composting (PDF)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Composting (Word)

Session #2  –  Soil and School Garden Goals

• SG 101 Session 2 Outline and Support Materials (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 2 Outline and Support Materials (Word)
  
  • Extracting Soil Microfauna — Terry Tollefson (video; 4:47 min)
  • Soil Biology (Microfauna) — Terry Tollefson (video; 5:35 min)
• SG 101 Session 2 Homework (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 2 Homework (Word)
• Resources
  • Know Your Soil — Soil Organic Matter
  • Know Your Soil — Testing Your Soil
  • Know Your Soil — Lead in the Soil
  • Guidelines for Using Manure on Vegetable Gardens
  • MOFGA — An Organic Farmer’s Guide to the Interpretation of a Standard Soil Test from the University of Maine
  • MOFGA — Natural Sources of Plant Nutrients
  • Soil Texture Triangle (Word)
  • pH Nutrient Availability Chart (Word)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Soil (PDF)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Soil (Word)

Session #3 –  Seedlings and Lay Groundwork for a School Garden

• SG 101 Session 3 Outline and Support Materials (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 3 Outline and Support Materials (Word)
• SG 101 Session 3 Homework (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 3 Homework (Word)
• Resources
  • Starting Seeds at Home
  • MOFGA — Soil-less Mixes for Vegetable Seedling Production
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials – Seedlings and Vegetables (PDF)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials – Seedlings and Vegetables (Word)
• SG 101 Mid-Course Evaluation (PDF)
• SG 101 Mid-Course Evaluation (Word)

Session #4 –  Garden Planning and Summer Care

• SG 101 Session 4 Outline and Support Materials (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 4 Outline and Support Materials (Word)
• SG 101 Session 4 Homework (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 4 Homework (Word)
• Resources
  • Vegetable Varieties for Maine Gardens
  • Container & Raised-Bed Gardening — Gardening in Small Spaces
  • Container & Raised-Bed Gardening — Growing Vegetables in Container Gardens
  • Planning a Home Vegetable Garden
  • Gardening with Raised Beds
  • Average First and Last Frost Dates for Maine: Victory Seeds
  • Vegetable Families: Organics for All 
  • Satisfactory (and Optimal) Plant-Growing Temperature Ranges: from Handbook for Vegetable Growers, James Knott
  • Garden Planning Chart (PDF)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Garden Planning (PDF)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Garden Planning (Word)

Session #5 — Beyond

• SG 101 Session 5 Outline and Support Materials (PDF)
• SG 101 Session 5 Outline and Support Materials (Word)
• Resources
  • Preventing Plant Diseases in Your Home Garden
  • Habitats Fact Sheet — Beneficial Insects and Spiders in Your Maine Backyard
  • Habitats Fact Sheet — Understanding Native Bees, the Great Pollinators
  • MOFGA — Garden Weeds
  • Five Steps to Food Safe Fruit and Vegetable Gardening
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Pesticides (PDF)
• Bibliography of School Classroom Lesson Materials — Pesticides (Word)
• SG 101 Final Evaluation (PDF)
• SG 101 Final Evaluation (Word)
• SG101 certificate sample (PDF)
• SG 101 certificate sample (Word)

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