Growing Together: Open Forum

Hello! I'm working on starting a garden club for 3rd-5th graders in Virginia Beach, VA, but I'm struggling to plan activities for each weekly meeting. We'll have about an hour per session, and I'd love to incorporate some earth-friendly crafts. Are there any free lesson plans available? I have a few activities we've used before, but I'm looking for fresh, easy, and fun ideas-especially since our past gardening attempts haven't been very successful. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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Shannon Manning
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I have a garden club for 4th and 5th graders at my school in Dallas.  Here is 1 idea we did that the kids loved.

Create colorful sun catcher wind chimes

Tape sheets of clear Contac paper onto desks, sticky side up. Then, have student press found sticks, flowers, feather, etc. onto the paper. Once the treasures are secure, place another sheet of Contac paper on top, sticky side down. Use a mason jar lid to trace a circle over the sheets. Cut out the circle then pop it into the lid. Tie string to the lids and dangle from a stick.

We also made terrariums and grew carrot seeds that we then transplanted into the garden:

Make a terrarium

Recycled plastic bottles can get a second life as museum-worthy terrariums as well as a home for an environmental science project. Cut the top 1/3 and bottom 1/3 of a 2-liter bottle off. In the bottom half, insert small plants or flowers into a mix of soil and moss. Then pop the top on to create a humid, protected growing environment.

We have also followed the "regrow a vegetable" trend to do this :

Teaching students how to regrow veggies is one school gardening activity you may do in addition to your regular lesson. Avocados, basil, carrots, onions and many other veggies can all be regrown. Keep the base of the fruits and vegetables in mind when chopping them.

You can grow them in water or a little soil, while others can be planted after being allowed to dry for a day or two. These will continually grow back!

Hope some of these help!

We are currently building and painting birdhouses that we will hang all around the school playground and garden.

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Michelle Stack
Dallas TX
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I currently work in an Early Childhood School, and my students are 3-5 years old.  I have about 18 weeks of activities (one activity per week) in addition to working in the garden (pulling weeds, watering, fertilizing, etc.).  I know my group is quite a bit younger than yours, but maybe you could add something to make them developmentally appropriate!

I also have all the activity tools (PowerPoints, worksheets, puzzles, matching game) that you will need for the activities that I can also send if you wish.

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Cassandra Treese
Selinsgrove PA
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Original Message:
Sent: 03-11-2025 11:12:43 AM
From: Michelle Stack
Subject: lesson plan for garden club

I have a garden club for 4th and 5th graders at my school in Dallas.  Here is 1 idea we did that the kids loved.

Create colorful sun catcher wind chimes

Tape sheets of clear Contac paper onto desks, sticky side up. Then, have student press found sticks, flowers, feather, etc. onto the paper. Once the treasures are secure, place another sheet of Contac paper on top, sticky side down. Use a mason jar lid to trace a circle over the sheets. Cut out the circle then pop it into the lid. Tie string to the lids and dangle from a stick.

We also made terrariums and grew carrot seeds that we then transplanted into the garden:

Make a terrarium

Recycled plastic bottles can get a second life as museum-worthy terrariums as well as a home for an environmental science project. Cut the top 1/3 and bottom 1/3 of a 2-liter bottle off. In the bottom half, insert small plants or flowers into a mix of soil and moss. Then pop the top on to create a humid, protected growing environment.

We have also followed the "regrow a vegetable" trend to do this :

Teaching students how to regrow veggies is one school gardening activity you may do in addition to your regular lesson. Avocados, basil, carrots, onions and many other veggies can all be regrown. Keep the base of the fruits and vegetables in mind when chopping them.

You can grow them in water or a little soil, while others can be planted after being allowed to dry for a day or two. These will continually grow back!

Hope some of these help!

We are currently building and painting birdhouses that we will hang all around the school playground and garden.

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Michelle Stack
Dallas TX
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We've been doing garden club for the past 18 years!  These are some of the activities that we do with our 3rd & 4th grade members.  Garden Club Activities

We do 6 weeks in the spring and fall for 3rd & 4th graders after school for 2 hours. Because we are fortunate enough to see these students on a regular basis, they already have the background knowledge and want to be here to experience more of the garden.  I wish you the best of luck!

Hope

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Hope Sickmeier
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Hi!

I work with 5th & 6th graders for our garden club. We have done a food tasting of garden vegetables that we would grow (spinach, different tomato varieties, lettuce, radishes). We also did some rock painting for students to take home and put in their yards/gardens.

If you want to start seeds, we've had a lot of success with zinnias and marigolds. They are hardy and start easily. Then students can take them home and plant them in their own yards or a pot or you can send home. Choose a smaller zinnia variety if your students will be taking them home to grow in pots. 

Tomato seeds are also great vegetables to start that can be taken home to grow in a pot. 

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Monica Naugler
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Original Message:
Sent: 3/13/2025 11:45:00 AM
From: Monica Naugler
Subject: RE: lesson plan for garden club

Hi!

I work with 5th & 6th graders for our garden club. We have done a food tasting of garden vegetables that we would grow (spinach, different tomato varieties, lettuce, radishes). We also did some rock painting for students to take home and put in their yards/gardens.

If you want to start seeds, we've had a lot of success with zinnias and marigolds. They are hardy and start easily. Then students can take them home and plant them in their own yards or a pot or you can send home. Choose a smaller zinnia variety if your students will be taking them home to grow in pots. 

Tomato seeds are also great vegetables to start that can be taken home to grow in a pot. 

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Monica Naugler
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Hi Shannon,

When I was working at an elementary school, our students harvested seeds from our pollinator garden. We had a seed packet challenge where students designed labels for the packets. The challenge was to design a label that would capture someone's attention in a garden store. They also had to include instructions for how to plant them. The selected design was made into actual labels by a parent who owned a print shop. There were so many creative designs that they were made into weatherproof signs that adorned the garden spaces. 

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[Karen] [Taylor]
[Get2Green Support Specialist]
[Fairfax County Public Schools]
[Fairfax] [VA]
[She,Her]
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