Science Comes to Life in the Garden!

Forty-four years of garden-based education has taught us that people are the heart of school gardens. 

In the dynamic, living environment of a garden, children can explore and find inspiration on their own, of course. But learning truly comes to life when there is a skilled garden educator there to connect those explorations with Next Generation Science concepts like energy flow, structure and function, and interdependent relationships in ecosystems. 

That’s why we invited educators to our Next Generation Science in the Garden workshop at our flagship Garden Classroom on the UCSC Farm in September to learn how to explore science and engineering with children in their garden classrooms. 

During the day teachers became engineers as they practiced a lesson.

They built garden signs that could withstand the weather, by using the intricate shapes of tree and plant roots for inspiration.

“For the first time in my 48 years, I am overcoming my resistance of science because of you!" A workshop participant said.

We know this hands-on approach to science works. A recent evaluation by UCSC researchers found that 2nd graders in Life Lab's Next Generation Science in the Garden programs in the Pajaro Unified School District gain knowledge about what scientists do, what scientists know, and how scientists think, and increasingly see themselves as potential scientists.