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RANDY FAGE UPDATES THESE PAGES
Participate in Real Learning!
It's a fascinating, beautiful, nourishing world of plants that sustains us all. Touch, taste, wonder, grow, cook, hike, plant, harvest, dissect, measure-discover through real experiences how plants work and how we depend on them. Natural links to science, cultural studies, history and geography provide energetic and lively ways to waken students to the green plants in their lives. At the Arboretum
We offer year-round field trips for schools. Fall, winter, and spring programs immerse students in the fun of active learning. Summer school programs are available too. Of special interest for schools are "Sunshine for Dinner, Anyone?", interactive exhibits on how plants feed us, and the "Learning Habitats for Neighborhood Schools". These five gardens show simple, low-maintenance designs to plant in schoolyards for hands-on learning.
Bringing plants to life:
Arboretum school fieldtrips are designed to put your class in touch with plants. Come taste test apples in the fall, search the greenhouse for plant adaptations in January, tap a maple tree in March, or find a lady slipper orchid blooming in May. Whatever the season, you will find age appropriate, standards based, hands-on plants programming that engages students, enhances classroom learning and brings plants to life for all young learners. [if space, picture of school fieldtrip in action would be better or maybe one of quotes below] Extend your fieldtrip:
Lunch facilities and self-guided visit resources are available to help you plan a whole day of Arboretum learning. What teachers are saying:
"The facility is gorgeous, the staff works well with children and the programming is exciting and interesting. The garden was a wonderful experience for our group of inner-city St. Paul students." 2nd grade teacher. "It was so well organized, captivating for students, not to mention it blended beautifully with our science unit. I still reference the fieldtrip in my lessons." 3rd grade teacher. Taking it on the road:
The Plantmobile comes to the comfort and convenience of your own school. Unlike larger assembly programs, the Plantmobile visits one classroom at a time to ensure each child can connect with the hands-on activities, real plants, special materials, and great visuals. Programs use real-life plant examples to explore topics like life-cycles, adaptations, biodiversity, and ecological function. You can extend the learning with the included math, art, and science activities for use in class or at home. [You can cut either this paragraph OR the bulleted list if you really need to.] The Plantmobile is perfect for those who: • are too far away to come for a fieldtrip
• have trouble affording or scheduling buses
• want to complement classroom curriculum
• want to save prep time by using an expert instructor to deliver a complete package-from the concepts to the planting supplies. Please call to inquire about our Preschool Plantmobile programs.
Call (952) 443-1422 to book the Plantmobile today. (see School Programs Brochure for more school programs ) What teachers are saying: "The instructor was knowledgeable and had a good rapport with students. Loved the hands-on activities, especially using charts and microscopes for the plant/tree identification." "The materials were fabulous. The instructor was dynamic and knowledgeable. . . .I'll highly recommend this to other schools!" Back to Top
Arboretum School Services strive to make our programs available to all school audiences. The following initiatives help us to serve underserved schools.
Partnerships:
Grant funded partnerships offer an immersion of plant based learning for the entire school community-students, teachers, and parents. Scholarships:
Grant funded scholarships cover the cost of individual Arboretum programs and in some cases the transportation costs as well. These scholarships make it possible for many economically disadvantaged schools to access Arboretum programming. What teachers are saying:
"This was a great day for us. The scholarship made this wonderful learning experience possible for our students." "We appreciate your scholarship for our kids. Coming from the inner-city, the opportunity to be surrounded by natural beauty and people who care for the Earth is a healing thing."
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The Teacher Resource Center was created to help you teach about plants. It has the best in children's literature and current curriculum resources. Do you teach a unit about: Apples? Rainforests? Plants we eat? Wildflowers? Deserts? Plants of the South?
Resources on all these and more are available. The Teacher Resource Center is generally open 8 am - 5 pm weekdays. Call (952) 443-1422 to let us know you're coming.
Programs for Teachers
Public Policy Programs are the Arboretum's newest way to bring people together to explore environmental issues, learn from experts and become part of the solution. Themes in the spotlight for 2006-07 are: • Healthy eating and the earth - environmental impact of eating local foods, sustainable food production, energy costs, school lunch programs
• Nature and children - role in nature in healthy child development, designing and using gardens and nature areas at schools, parks and daycare centers
• Low impact development - ways to use nature's landscape to preserve the environment and enhance development
With the generous support of the family of Marion Andrus, we are able to offer a special scholarship fund for educators to participate. If your school lacks funding for professional development, a team of teachers and interested parents may apply for a scholarship to attend. Ask your principal to contact us for details at 952 443-1422 or education@arboretum.umn.edu.
Visit our Public Policy Programs page for topics, dates and speakers
Partners for Growing Science Workshops
It's a unique way to combine classroom and Arboretum learning! The Arboretum developed the Partners for Growing Science Units with four other public gardens. They support science standards and help you link classroom studies with a field trip. Come to the teacher workshop and you'll get 2-3 weeks of comprehensive lesson plans, a student journal, and a kit full of supplies to use as you teach the unit.
Find out what to expect on the fieldtrip, and how to use the experiences back at school.
For more information, see Education for School Programs Brochure pp. 14.
Five gardens at the Arboretum show simple, low-maintenance plantings to plant at schools for hands-on learning. Visit the Marion Andrus Learning Center at the Arboretum to see the Garden for Birds, Garden to Greet Spring, Prairie Planting, Woodland Edge and Raised Beds. Garden descriptions, designs and plant lists are available online.
See School Programs Brochure.
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Home School Days are filled with hands-on exploration of plants at your own pace. Together the student and their educator will explore different activity stations and learn about that day's theme.
Home School Days are filled with hands-on exploration of plants at your own pace. Together the student and their educator will explore different activity stations and learn about that day's theme.
Individual and Group registrations accepted.
Pre-registration is required by the Friday before session date.
FEE PER SESSION:
$5 per child (member)
$7 per child (non-member)
$20 limit per family
FEE FOR ALL 4 SESSIONS:
$15 per child (member)
$21 per child (non-member)
Fees includes one adult admission to the Arboretum on program day.
PLANTS: ADAPTED TO SURVIVE
February 19, 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Discover how plants have adapted to survive in three of the worlds most extreme habitats: the tropical rainforest, the bog, and the desert. Use plant adaptation clues to figure out in which habitats plants live. Explore plant adaptations in the greenhouse, and plant a terrarium to take home.
A SAPPY ENDING: A SWEET GOODBYE TO WINTER
March 19, 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Taste the product of last summer's maple leaves . . . sugar! Find out how summer photosynthesis becomes spring syrup. Tour our sugarbush and tap a maple tree. Taste the sap and discover how it is made into syrup. Explore the history of maple syrup making in Minnesota and find out how Chanhassen got its name.
PLANTS: FOOD FOR LIFE
April 16, 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.
What do plants have to do with breakfast? Find out how plants make the sun's energy available to us. Learn to make a simple snack using a delicious plant that is easy to grow on your kitchen windowsill. Explore grocery store plants of all kinds in our greenhouse. Discover plants' essential place in the food chain.
SPRING TO LIFE
May 21, 12:30 - 2:30 p.m.
It is the season of new growth and brilliant bloom. See the woodland wildflowers in bloom and learn about their ephemeral life cycles. Measure the importance of sunlight in spring growth, and witness plant pollinators in action. Plant seeds for your home garden and learn about the visitors your plants will attract. (The Content Below was extracted from new brochure, this needs to be integrated in the above) TEACHER RESOURCES Planning a plant lesson?
Visit the Teacher Resource Center at the Learning Center. Here you will find a collection of the best curriculum resources and children's literature related to plants and the environment. Planning a schoolyard garden?
Checkout the Schoolyard Habitat models. Planting lists, plans, and curriculum connections for each habitat are available on the Arboretum web site. Visit the Arboretum Learning Center to see each of the Schoolyard Habitat models in person.
Want to learn more?
Check out the Arboretum's Adult Education Program. The Gardening School, The Heartland Cooking Series, and Hands-on Workshops provide opportunities to deepen your experience with plants.
Attend an Arboretum Public Policy Program. Meet leading authors, scholars, topical experts, professionals, and concerned citizens who come together to address and understand critical issues affecting the environment, our natural surroundings, and quality of life. A scholarship fund has been established to insure that educators will have a seat at the table. OTHER QUOTE OPTIONS:
"Very developmentally appropriate-fun visuals & hands-on learning to keep the kids engaged. I appreciated that most of the content overlapped and extended currently covered curriculum." --SF PM 2006
"The most valuable aspect is that the kids will now apply the knowledge to our plant unit. The presenter was excellent and made it so fun for the kids!" -- plantmobile teacher 5.9.06 "Our presenter was patient, clear, concise and knew first graders! She presented slowly and visually which our non-english speakers need!" -- plantmobile teacher 5.12.06 "The instructor was very knowledgeable, age-appropriate, and enthusiastic. The hands-on activities are great!" -- plantmobile teacher 5.17.06 Dear Christine,
Thank you. It was fun to learn about bulbs. My favorite part was planting bulbs.
Sincerely, Peter (1st grader at Cedarcrest Academy) "The most valuable aspect for us is the enrichment of curriculum, the hands-on experience, the opening of doors to new awareness of things around us." -- plantmobile teacher Zoom-In 2006 "It's a wonderful program-thanks so much for coming all the way down here! It was so valuable to bring the microscopes [since] we don't have them!" - plantmobile teacher 1.23.06 zoom-in
"this was a new program for us-the kids were very excited about learning about desert plants. The whole hour of instruction was great." -- plantmobile teacher ED 2006.
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