Workshops tailored may incorporate:
- Horticulture/Landscape Design: Propagation Techniques, Seed-saving. Seasonal veggie growing, Harvesting and cooking. Gardening Principles; organic, permaculture, crop rotation, companion planting. Natural Pest Management. Design components, building a wicking garden bed. Worms and Compost, etc.
- Sustainable Principles: Re-using and recycling materials within workshops, ways to reduce ecological footprint and feel sense of environmental responsibility.
- Eco-Art: Incorporating Ecopsychology (Nature+wellbeing) and creative activities (More info)
- Learning how to design a sensory garden. (PD or consultation)
Early Childhood Workshop examples
‘Children's active and passive interactions with plants and gardening influence their attitudes and actions towards trees and the environment as adults.’
Lohr, V.I. and C.H. Pearson-Mims.(2005.)
Bird and Butterfly Workshop
"Cocoon. Butterfly from a cocoon. Lays some eggs, a caterpillar goes to a cocoon." 3 yr old |
"It comes out to butterfly. How did it get in there?" 3 yr old |
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"I like finding all those things and doing plants. I like learning about plants with you, Ms Debbie." 4 yr old |
"Ms Debbie created an awareness of gardening and shared the importance of composting and recycling with the children. She engaged them in the different ways of caring for plants and provided hands on experiences for our Preschoolers."
Sherlyn David -Preschool Teacher, Australian International School Singapore. 2012.
Recycled Container Workshop
"I put some dirt in the shoe. We plant in there a plant that was already growed. We put it in the garden and watered it. It was funny cause we watered a shoe." |
“Be gentle with plants and water them when they are thirsty.” 5 yr old “Don’t kill the plants when they are alive because plants give us air and if we kill them we will have no air to breathe.” 5 yr old |
Mini-Landfill, recycling and composting
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"I am doing planting. Water the plants so them can grow. I planted the seeds in. I like to do so them can grow." 3 yr old |
"I like digging the dirt because then you have to put banana skin in the compost. It makes them grow happy and even bigger. I like to water plants because then plants will be happy. " 4yr old. |
Connecting to Nature using our Senses
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"It feels really tickly. I cant smell anything. I breathed air on it, it gives us air, nice air. Air gives you oxygen cause they have air. If it doesn’t get sunshine and rain it wont grow. " 4 yr old "It’s alive because it feels like it’s real. I’m breathing in and I’m breathing out. It takes air in the leaves."4yr old. |
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"I feel fluffy leaves. Doesn't smell like anything. It has green leaves. It makes me calm breathing in and out. I breathed in, I breathed out. They get air for us." 4yr old “When you touch Mimosa and it close up it’s special to me. Plants give us air and I give air back.” 4yr old |
Chinese Brush painting Art
Demonstration and workshop with Preschool children
These 4 and 5 year old preschool students were using materials that were foreign to them. They had no hesitation in trying something new; being a risk-taker. They demonstrated they had listened well to instructions, and used precision in their work. Reflecting later clearly showed they understood their materials, the origin of the painting style, how to repeat the exercise, enjoyment of the workshop and pride in their accomplishments.
"I was doing a tree blossom painting. I first did a tree truck and also did the flower. It was on a special type of paper." 4yr old |
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