Getting The Most Out of Your School’s Garden to Table Classroom

Educator Professional Learning and Volunteer Training Course

Winter 2023 training is complete! Thank you to all who joined us! Watch this space for future training offerings.

This training is appropriate for new or returning participants. videos of spring 2022 trainings are posted below.

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Great news! Our Spring 2022 training was a huge success, and both teachers and parents/volunteers asked for more, so we’re offering Part 2 in early 2023! Our grant from Boulder County Sustainable Food and Ag continues to be available to pay stipends. (Details below)

Dates/format

all sessions held at fireside elementary in louisville

• January 26th 4:00-6:00 pm – Teachers (in person)
• February 2nd 4:00-5:30 pm – Teachers & volunteers (in person)
• March 2nd 4:00-6:00 pm – Teachers & volunteers (in person)
• March 9th 4:00-5:30 pm – Volunteers (hybrid with zoom option)
  • +2 hours asynchronous work time for teachers
  • 7.5 hours for teachers, 5 hours for volunteers
• Location TBD – GTT partner school (indoor and in the garden)

Why a parent/volunteer training? Why a teacher training?

Garden to Table empowers school communities with gardens and curriculum to engage all students in experiential outdoor education. We are half of a partnership – the school (parents, volunteers, and teachers) are the other half. Without you, learning would not happen and the gardens would flounder, so we want to be sure you feel well equipped to fill and grow your role as an educator, Garden Lead, or volunteer in the garden. This will be a chance to meet teachers and volunteers from your own and other schools, and learn answers to questions you may have about your school’s garden or gardening generally. 

We’d love your support getting the word out to fellow teachers and community members about our Winter 2023 training. If both volunteers and teachers receive more training and support, we know each school garden can better fulfill its learning potential in 2023 and beyond. Could you please help by sharing this info with others who may be interested, and with your school’s administration to include in upcoming newsletters?

What will the training cover? 

Five Garden to Table staff will guide you to make best use of your school’s garden classroom.  This Part 2 training will build on our 2022 session, and revisit previous topics as needed. Content will be finalized based on the needs of enrollees, and groups will be split as needed to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to make the most of this training.

• Session 1: January 26th 4:00-6:00 pm – Teachers only
  • Curriculum Day – including updates and best practices
    • Teachers should bring laptop computers to be able to access curriculum resources online
  • Additional teacher prep time
    • To receive full credit, teachers will spend 2 hours of asynchronous work time to best pair GTT program/curriculum with their school community

• Session 2: February 2nd 4:00-5:30 pm – Teachers & volunteers
  • GTT Website 101 – including new curriculum and calendar updates!
    • Participants are encouraged to bring laptops or mobile devices to practice website navigation
  • Program and garden Q&A and FAQ
    • Smaller groups will be facilitated to meet participant’s diverse needs
  • Networking within and across schools

• Session 3: March 2nd 4:00-6:00 pm – Teachers & volunteers
  • Station Rotation Day
    • Lesson logistics for all partners
    • Gardening practices and related teaching opportunities
    • Relationship and Belonging in the school garden

• Session 4: March 9th 4:00-5:30 pm – Volunteers only – Hybrid with Zoom option
  • GTT/Volunteer Partnership Day
    • Best practices for Garden Leads and volunteers
    • How our partnership works to support teachers and students

Instructors

• Mandi Leigh – Garden Educator and Curriculum Writer, is an EdD Candidate studying education reform.
• Lindsey LeCuyer – Program Director, is a former public school educator and has 10 years of experience as a Garden Lead at one of our partner schools.
• Leslie Norcross – Community Engagement Director, is familiar with many aspects of our organization, with 9 years of experience as a Garden Lead at one of our partner schools, and 3 years as a Garden Coordinator.
• Adoree Faul – Co-Garden Manager, has experience in permaculture, organic farming and education in both hemispheres, with a background in Human Nutrition and Food Science.
• Courtlyn Carpenter – Co-Garden Manager, has worked on numerous farms across the United States and is involved with gleaning initiatives throughout Colorado.

Credit and Stipend Details

• Volunteers – $100 stipends are available for the first 40 enrollees from current GTT partner schools, upon completion of the entire course (5 hours).
• Teachers – BVSD teachers may receive Salary Credit for 7.5 hours of professional learning, or Instructional Seat Time and a $150 stipend upon completion of the entire course (5.5 hours in person and 2 hours independent).
• Enrollment priority will be given to current GTT partner schools, with a goal of 2-3 volunteers and 2 teachers per school completing either of the 2022 and 2023 training sessions.
• Please consider your ability to participate in the entire training before signing up. The grant which funds this program has a stated goal of a certain number of participant hours, and we risk non-compliance (and not being reimbursed!) if many enrollees don’t complete the listed hours.

Questions?  Please let us know. We’ll do our best to get back in touch promptly. lindsey@gardentotable.org