Lesson by Big Green
Lesson originally designed for outdoor gardens, but can be easily adapted for indoor gardens.
In this activity, students cooperate to create a unique set of behaviour and safety rules for the Learning Garden. When students participate in creating Learning Garden rules, they have a better understanding of the behaviour expectations for the Learning Garden.
Incorporate your garden into the culture of your school by inviting students to participate in a rule-making activity. Setting behaviour expectations from the beginning will ensure that the garden is respected and can function as an engaging space for learning.
Growth mindset poster for the classroom or individual students.
When Carol Dweck and her colleagues studied students’ attitudes about failure over 30 years ago, they noticed that some students rebounded while other students seemed devastated by small setbacks. Dr. Dweck coined the terms fixed mindset and growth mindset. When a student has a growth mindset, they understand that their intelligence and abilities could grow through practice, hard work and determination. A fixed mindset is the notion that intelligence is fixed and that it, along with talent, alone lead to success. With a fixed mindset, you believe you were either born with it, or you were not.
This poster helps students choose language to develop their growth mindset!
check out the Little Green Thumbs infographic poster for inspiration about how you can improve the social and emotional wellbeing of your students with a classroom garden.
- Calming Environment. Environments with living plants help to regulate emotions, improve focus, concentration and have been shown to reduce stress.
- Healthy Eating. Children who grow their own food are more likely to eat fruits and vegetables.
- Teamwork. Gardens encourage positive human relationship, social skills and belonging.
- Empathy. Gardens teach nurturance, patience and respect for living things.
- Inclusivity. A garden is the perfect learning tool for students not succeeding in a traditional learning environments.
- Self Esteem. A garden creates a safe place for risk and can normalize small setbacks, leading to greater resiliency and self esteem.
