Explore
Sustainability action process – Step 2
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Explore actions that result in growing food that is suited to the climate and seasons and will grow with the resources the school and community can provide.
Record your ideas, proposals and reflections in your learning journal.
Murnong, or yam daisies, grown and harvested at Braddock Public School in western Sydney
Generate ideas and explore options for actions
Generate ideas and explore options for actions
- Are there kitchen gardens in other schools? What are they like?
- What food preparation facilities and equipment do other schools have?
- What do we need to do to establish a kitchen garden in our school?
- What types of action can we take to bring about the change we want?
- How will we know if we have been successful in establishing a kitchen garden?
Raised kitchen garden beds at Ellerston Public School in north-western NSW
Getting started
- Learn how other schools have approached creating and maintaining a kitchen garden in the case studies on Eco-schools–gardens.
- Refer to the How to start a kitchen garden guides by Healthy Kids Association when listing the things to consider when running a garden project.
- Use the online resource How does your garden grow? to learn about plants and how to plan and make a class garden at school.
- Explore the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation website for tips on managing, harvesting and preparing food.
- Read the picture book 'A patch from scratch' by Megan Forward. The story recounts the steps in turning a backyard into a productive 'farm'.
No-dig gardening at Cringila Public School in the Illawara, NSWCringila Public School | Vimeo (3:04min)
Types of gardens
- View Cringila Public School's Vimeo video (3.04min) explaining how to construct a no-dig garden.
- View the Filmpond video, Garden club 2019 (3.00min), showcasing students planning companion planting in McCallum Public School's garden.
- View the steps in constructing garden beds and a yarning circle in the Filmpond video, Orara High School community garden (5:03min).
Students create nutrient-rich compost for growing fresh produce at Cringila Public School Cringilaps | YouTube (1:35min)
Close the loop – worm farms and compost systems
- Compost systems produce nutrient-rich compost. View the YouTube video, Cringella Public School – Live life well (1:35min). Create a flow-chart to show how compost systems help close the loop in food production.
- Worm farms produce castings and worm juice that can be used as fertiliser. View the Gardening Australia video, Worms 3 ways (5:56min), to find out about three different ways of making worm farm systems that will benefit the garden.
- Listen to the Love of Dirt podcast on Closing the loop in the backyard veggie patch.
Raised kitchen garden beds and a greenhouse at Oxley Park Public School in western Sydney
Generate ideas
- List innovative ways to create sustainable kitchen gardens in your school.
- Try a silent debate to collect reactions.
- Your ideas will need to have evidence on which to base your thinking. The Intel Showing evidence tool may assist you.
Identify resources and constraints
Identify resources and constraints
- Who might be available to help us?
- What time and finances are available for the project?
- What might limit our actions?
- Who might be available to help us?
- Do we know all the materials and equipment we need to have a garden for students?
- Are we going to build a kitchen or is there an alternative that can enable safe food handling?
Create a project mind map
- Map out different aspects of your project, the information or knowledge you need and the people or locations that can provide support.
List people who can assist
- List your team and those in the school that will help and provide advice. Remember your school's Parents and Citizens (P&C) Association, local businesses and local council.
- Collate responses from your item in the school newsletter calling for parent helpers. Were there any teachers interested in helping?
Identify costs
- Do you have a budget or have you worked out any costs?
- Check to see if there are any grants available you could apply for to help your project.
- Create a spreadsheet listing actions with corresponding costs and resources needed.
Identify opportunities and issues
- Consider and list issues that may arise that could affect your plan.
- Review Gardening Australia’s vegie guide. Remember to take into consideration the school holidays.
Select ideas for action
Select ideas for action
- Considering our resources and constraints, what type of actions best meet the criteria of creating a kitchen garden in our school?
- Can we come up with a great idea?
- What will we do?
Seedlings propagated in hand-made newspaper pots
Determine ideas
- In groups, plan and draw a few different ideas for producing food at school. Try Google Jamboard as a tool to collate ideas and impacts.
- Learn how to make decisions in your project planning. Being able to suggest, argue and agree on an idea or plan is an important part of planning.
Crushed egg-shells protect a lettuce seedling from slugs
Select best options
- Select the best option using a decision-making tool such as the decision matrix analysis. How can your team rank a proposal if you don’t all agree?
- Work together to describe your team's proposal. Use systems thinking tools or flow charts to refine your understandings of impacts of the proposal.
- Write your brief or agreed action in your learning journal.
Have you now decided your team's proposal?
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