Course Goal
   The goal of this course is to provide participants with the skills and knowledge necessary for designing and implementing an elementary-level, integrated curriculum based on the science of horticulture, the interdisciplinary nature of plants, and the art of gardening.  The course will also address and use the Virginia SOLs when developing these learning activities.

Course Objectives
    Upon successfully completing this course, participants will:

• be able to construct an interdisciplinary, garden-based educational unit that can meet many of Virginia's new Standards of Learning
• have a greater understanding of plants and their influence on human culture
• develop contacts with horticulture specialists and volunteers for classroom and curriculum support
• successfully plant and maintain a variety of plant materials
• use a variety of horticultural practices to enhance the use of plants in the curriculum, for example, asexual propagation, grafting, soil testing, vermiculture, and composting.

Course Format
    Due to the hands-on-nature of horticulture and gardening, this course will involve student participation in a variety of interactive activities and learning experiences.  Field trips, 4-H horticulture materials, and guest lectures from horticulture specialists will supplement course material.  A fall meeting will be arranged during which the participants will present the garden-based, thematic unit they will have developed during the five-day course and field-tested during the fall semester with their own students.

Topics Covered
Gardening in the curriculum - meeting the Virginia SOLs
Educational learning theory and horticulture
Earth stewardship through gardening
Horticulture education resources
Relationship between man and plants - modern times and throughout history
Gardening, plants, and the language arts
School Gardening
Soil, worms, and composting
Plants in math and science
Plant care in the classroom
Cooperative Extension and Master Gardeners - Volunteer Resources
Funding your garden projects - the business of growing
Art, nutrition, and physical education

Sample Schedule
Click here to see a sample class schedule.