Green Village Initiative
School Garden Lesson Plans
Welcome
Welcome to the Green Village Initiative website for school garden lesson plans and much more! This site was created through a collaboration between GVI, Food Corps. and Sacred Heart University. Lesson plans were written or curated from various organizations and aligned with Bridgeport School district's curriculum. Lesson plans are organized by grade level and season as well as through 4 overarching themes: Nutrition, Garden, Food Access and Food Ecology. To search the tool box of lesson plans click on the link below!
Green Village Initiative (GVI) is an urban agriculture organization.
Our mission is to grow food, knowledge, leadership and community—
through urban gardening and farming—to create a more just food system.
We operate Reservoir Community Farm, manage 12 Community Gardens,
lead Youth Leadership Programming and support Bridgeport’s teachers
in using school gardens as outdoor classrooms.
Visit us our on website: www.gogvi.org
GVI School Garden Partnership
We support Bridgeport’s School Gardens by boosting teacher confidence and ability in using gardens as an outdoor classroom. Let us help you make your school garden an inspiring, rewarding and memorable experience. We are are here for you and dedicated to your success!
In support of Bridgeport’s School Garden Champions, GVI offers the following:
School Garden Lesson Plans for grades K–6 available on our website (www.gogvi.org/lessonplans) and available in digital (thumb drive) or hard copy form upon request.
Professional Development (PD) Opportunities. We will host 2–4 PD days per year, at various school locations, to build teachers’ confidence in using school gardens as outdoor classrooms. Teachers will be led through one of our School Garden Lesson Plans and provided with materials as appropriate.
Field Trips to Reservoir Community Farm. These are very limited; our team will be in touch when we have field trip opportunities available.
1 clean-up or planting day per calendar year.
Spring and fall deliveries of seeds, seedlings, and crop plans.
Tools, soil, and bed repair as needed.
Seasonal check-ins to assess challenges and needs, to provide you with tailored support.
During the school year, active school gardens can be partnered with a FoodCorps Service Member to help build sustainability for their garden program. GVI will assess garden programs at each school and identify the best fit for next year’s FoodCorps Service Members. We can partner with up to 4 schools per year to host FoodCorps Service Members.
School Garden Champions make this possible!
We provide a great deal of support, and School Garden Champions are our liaisons. With the strength of their leadership, we are ready to help school gardens succeed.
Bridgeport’s school gardens are activated, planted, maintained, and harvested by the school community. School Garden Champions are empowered to lead the development of your school garden and are responsible for the following roles:
Staying in touch with GVI about progress and challenges.
Activating, maintaining and harvesting the garden.
Keeping students engaged regularly
Organizing harvest days and sharing produce with the school community
Keeping the space welcoming and accessible.
Building and maintaining a School Garden Committee of teachers, students, parents, or faculty.
Creating a summer plan for garden maintenance and harvest.
If your school hasn’t identified a School Garden Champion, please consider lending your garden to an urban farmer or community member.
Lessons Curated or Developed in Partnership with
GVI, Sacred Heart University, and Food Corps