Join our team! Life Lab is hiring!!! Open positions include Development Director, Bilingual Community Liaison, and Garden Instructors. More positions are coming soon!
Little Munchkins
Little Munchkins Pretend you have shrunk to the size of an ant and imagine the world from that perspective! Ages 5+ ~15 min For this activity you’ll need a string (about 24 inches long), colored pencils, paper, a firm book or clipboard to draw on and a magnifyi [...]
See Our New Blooming Classroom Site
Learn more about our work in the Pajaro Valley Unified School District at www.lifelab.org/pajaro. [...]
Steps to a Successful Garden Workday
-by John Fisher Life Lab's Director of Partnerships and Programs This post is part of our Sustaining School Gardens Series Over the years I have led many garden workdays at the Life Lab Garden Classroom and school gardens across California. In addition to the obv [...]
Good Times ~ “Food, What?!” Selected for Good Times Community Fund
Our "Food, What?!" Youth Program was selected as one of four programs in the Good Times Community Fund. We have the goal to raise $12,500 through the Good Times Community Fund. Right now, every dollar donated will be matched. Please Consider a Year-End Donation t [...]
Worm Composting Resources and Video
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="180"] Worm Sign Design from Life Lab[/caption] We like our red worms that compost for us at the Garden Classroom. Here are some resources for you to learn and teach about red worms. Vermicomposting Q and A from Ca [...]
Benefit Event on GoodTimes TV
Life Lab's Annual Benefit was so great this year that the local media came to make a video of it:-) Greg Archer of the GoodTimes finds out what Life Lab is all about. [...]
“Back Pocket” Garden Activities
The following videos demonstrate what we, here at Life Lab, refer to as "back pocket activities." These are all quick, easy, and highly engaging activities that require minimal preparation. We suggest always having one or more of these activities ready to go (or "in [...]
“Food, What?!” Youth Program
Eco Company TV created this video on Life Lab's Spring Afterschool Internship. It aired across the nation on over 100 TV stations. Check out more at Eco Company http://www.eco-company.tv/tvshow/episode-102-organic-growing More on "Food,What?!" [...]
Worm Composting
Everyone should learn to compost with worms. They are natures way of recycling so they can be greatly beneficial to the environment. It can be good for teaching kids how to make less waste and how giving back to the envirnment can be a good thing. By showing them wo [...]
Birthday Party in the Garden Classroom
Our 30th Birthday Party was celebrated in The Garden Classroom with over 450 people enjoying garden crafts, strawberry tarts, chickens, goats, fresh squeezed lemonade, The Banana Slug String Band, garden fresh pizza, honey tasting, and of course a huge birthday c [...]
Life Lab Video Contest Winner
As part of our 30th Birthday we hosted a video contest. The theme of the contest was "How does the garden help you grow?" See more information, runner ups and link to all the entries here: www.lifelab.org/contest.php Here is the winning video: First Prize Winner: G [...]
Project Food Lab Video
They really have something great going at Pacific Elementary School in Davenport, CA. Since 1984 the Food Lab Program, in cooperation with the school's Life Lab Garden Program, has been cooking the school lunch for students and staff! [...]
“Food, What?!” Harvest Fest on KSBW News
KSBW TV News was on hand at our 2008 Harvest Fest that served hundreds of Middle and High School Students from Santa Cruz County. Check out their news report and how the reporters were trying to get the right inflection on the words "FOOOOD.....WHHAT!!!??!!!" See fe [...]
Compost Sifting Lesson
Garden instructor Jane Forbes of Westlake K-5 in Santa Cruz, CA teaches 2nd graders about compost. This 13 minute video is created from a 45 minute lesson of children learning about decomposition by sifting composting and exploring the garden. [...]
Creating School Garden Rules
Hear from three Life Lab Garden Instructors and one 3rd Grade Teacher on how they generate and share their school garden rules. View our post and resources for Managing an Effective Outdoor Classroom. [...]
40 Years of School Garden Instruction
The following videos are interviews with Garden Teacher Jane Forbes of Westlake K-5, 3rd Grade Teacher Colleen Riggen of Mar Vista K-5, and Garden Teacher Caprice Potter of Gateway K-8. Collectively these three garden educators have close to 40 years of teaching childre [...]
Spring Scavenger Hunt
Garden Instructor Susan Dahlgren leads first graders in a garden scavenger hunt. This 7 minute video highlights a 20 minute lesson at Gault K-5 School Garden in Santa Cruz, CA. [...]
Flower Anatomy Lesson
Caprice Potter has been a garden teacher since 1987 at Gateway K-8 in Santa Cruz, CA. This 13 minute video highlights a 40 minute flower anatomy lesson taught in the spring of 2008. Visit the Gateway Life Lab Garden blog to learn more what's being taught in the gard [...]
2007 ~ Food, What?! ~ A Youth Empowerment Program
From the early days of the Garden Classroom there were always visions of offering programming for teens. We focus on teaching young adults and children about where there food comes from and how to eat a balanced and nutritional diet. As we do this, we hope to fo [...]
2000 ~ The Garden Classroom: Life Lab’s Model Educational Garden
In 2000 construction begins for the latest chapter in Life Lab's history. In collaboration with the UCSC Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS) The Garden Classroom annually serves thousands of pre-schoolers through adults in garden-based learning a [...]
2000 ~ The Monterey Bay Science Project
The National Science Foundation Grant which funded the Language Acquisition in Science Education at Rural Schools comes to and end but LASERS continues to thrive through the Monterey Bay Science Project (MBSP). Life Lab becomes a MBSP host site and receives funding thro [...]
1995 ~ LASERS
The National Science Foundation funds Life Lab, from 1995-2001 in the Language Acquisition in Science Education at Rural Schools (LASERS) project. Life Lab starts working with 7 school districts to improve science teaching practices for second language learners. UCSC pa [...]
1986 ~ Life Lab Video
The following 14 minute video is a great summary of the impact that Life Lab Science Program has on schools. The power of school gardens has not changed much since 1986, but you will notice that hairstyles and clothing do! Are you one of the people in this video? Add a [...]
