Since 2017, we have hosted webinars created by SGSOs for SGSOs.
Join us for an upcoming offering or browse our archives. Visit our Online Forum and Promising Practices Documents for additional content related to webinar topics.
Visit www.sgsonetwork.org/connect to be informed of upcoming webinars and virtual gatherings
Stay Tuned for Upcoming Webinars!
Call for Webinar Topics and Paid Presenters We are a peer to peer network and strive to present on relevant topics to enhance your work supporting school garden programming. Let us know what topics you’d like to see or present. We provide honorariums for our presenters. Learn more and share your ideas here.
All webinars will be recorded and archived in the Archived Webinars and Virtual Gatherings section below.
SGSO Network Webinars and Virtual Gatherings are brought you by SGSO Network Advisory Committee Members with support from the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation.
Archived Webinars and Virtual Gatherings
2021 Leadership Institute Promising Practices Webinar Series
The Promising Practices Webinar Series summarizes the findings and resources of the 2021 Virtual Leadership Institute, a project of Life Lab in partnership with Whole Kids Foundation.
2021 Leadership Institute Promising Practices: Measuring Impacts and Sharing Results in Garden-Based Education – April 14, 2021
View Recording– – – Presentation PDF– – – Associated Assessment Promising Practices page
Since 2016, SGSO Network Leadership Institute participants have been collecting and sharing the ways that we evaluate our programs, assess student outcomes, and share our impacts. The 2021 Virtual SGSO Leadership Institute focused on sharing these resources in a more organized manner. Join us for a detailed summary of how SGSOs evaluate their programs, assess their students, and share their impacts.
2021 Leadership Institute Promising Practices: Strengthening Equity and Inclusivity in Our Organizations, Programming, Community Partnerships and Gardens April 7, 2021
View Recording – – – Presentation PDF– – – Associated Equity Promising Practices page
In this webinar, we invite all SGSO organizational team members including leadership, educators, board members and anyone else driven towards creating stronger more just SGSOs. We will be sharing a compilation of resources intended to help SGSOs explore potential ways to intertwine equity, inclusivity, diversity, and justice into all aspects of their organization and work.
2021 Leadership Institute Promising Practices: Finding and Sequencing High Quality Garden Lessons March 17, 2021
View Recording – – – Presentation PDF– – – Associated Garden Lessons Promising Practices page
How do school garden practitioners find or develop lessons that are inspiring, engaging and effective? How do they design lesson sequences intentionally to align with seasons, connect with standards, and optimize learning? Different programs require different lessons sequences to reflect their unique, local context; their program goals; and their students. In other words, there is no one-size-fits-all garden curriculum. In this Webinar, we will share a roadmap for developing an exceptional lesson sequence and highlight promising practices and stellar examples from SGSOs across the country along the way.
2021 Leadership Institute Promising Practices: Sustaining School Garden Programs March 10, 2021
View Recording – – – Presentation PDF – – – Relationship Building Breakout Room Presentation PDF and Jamboard
Associated Promising Practices pages for Funding, Relationship Building, and Staffing Models
What are the key elements, practices, and program models that lead to sustaining school gardens? Join SGSO leaders who examined this question during the SGSO Leadership Institute as they provide a summary of promising practices and engage participants in small group discussions. We will focus on funding and staffing models as well as providing examples of underlying elements that create SGSO sustainability. This webinar aims to support SGSO staff to increase their organization’s capacity to sustain and create well-integrated garden programs; share examples, tools and resources; and connect with other SGSO leaders to hear stories of success and challenges along the way.
Building Community Interest & Investment in Your School Garden Programs February 3, 2021
View Archive – – – Summer School Garden Care Ideas – – – Ideas to Engage Community Members. – – – Shared Roots – – – Racial Equity Scorecard
Other Relevant Webinars on archived on this page: Volunteer Management & Community Support, Summer Camp Programs at School Gardens & Farms, EdWeb: Summertime in the School Garden
School gardens have a unique challenge of utilizing the garden space during the summer months, while school is out of session. This virtual gathering will be a discussion of strategies that increase community around school gardens, especially during the summer months. The Big Green Chicago Team will facilitate a conversation with City Blossoms, Denver Urban Gardens, and the audience to collectively reflect, question, and share experiences to support efforts to strengthen school gardens through the summer.
Designing Garden Education to Support English Language Learners January 13, 2021
View Archive – – – Download a PDF of the Presentation – – – Scaffolding Lessons for Multilingual Learners. – – – Spanish Language GBL Resources
Discover strategies for supporting English Language Learners in understanding and engaging fully in garden education activities. Participants in this Webinar will explore the challenges of teaching across a language barrier; experience a lesson with effective instructional strategies embedded; and then debrief the specific strategies that can help students participate actively, regardless of their fluency in the language of instruction.
Winter Programming during Covid-19 December 16, 2020
View Archive – – – Download a PDF of the Presentation – – – View Resources Participants Shared in the Chat
As temperatures get colder and many school gardens are put to bed for the winter months additional adjustments will likely be needed to continue providing garden- and food-based learning opportunities to students. In this Virtual Gathering we will share creative ideas for tackling winter programming during Covid-19 whether you’re engaged in remote, hybrid, or in-person learning.
Incorporating Greenhouses into Your School Garden: Extending Your Garden-Based Learning and Growing Season December 2, 2020,
View Archive – – – Download a PDF of the Presentation – – – Greenhouse Manual: An Introductory Guide for Educators – – – View our Forum for More Greenhouse Related Resources – – – View our Forum for Hydro and Aquaponic Related Resources
Information and resources for establishing a new greenhouse project or further activating an existing greenhouse or hoop house. City Blossoms and Youth Staff members from Mighty Greens will share their expertise and experiences growing and running their programs in Washington DC.
School Gardens Support for Food Relief and Food Pantries Virtual Gathering September 23, 2020
View Archive – – – View Q and A Padlet
Join other School Garden Support Organizations to learn and share how school and community garden programs are distributing their harvests to address food insecurity and provide food relief during Covid-19.
In-Person Outdoor Instruction During Covid – Virtual Gathering September 16, 2020
View Archive – – – Download Slide Deck – – – View Golestan School Slidedeck – – – View Golestan School Photos – – – View Q & A Padlet – – – View Registrant Examples of How they are Teaching During Covid – – – Adjusting Classroom Curriculum to Outdoors
For this gathering, we’ll focus on “In-Person, Outdoor Instruction with COVID Restrictions in Place” including:
– Traditional classroom activities that translate well to an Outdoor Classroom
– Tips and curricula for teaching outdoors
– Strategies for maintaining social distance while teaching
– Systems for managing and sanitizing teaching materials
– Strategies for encouraging hand washing, proper use of masks, and the like while teaching in an Outdoor Classroom
Bringing Social Emotional Learning & Mindfulness Education to Your Work – Webinar September 9, 2020
View Archive – – – Download Slide Deck – – – View Resource Handout – – – View Attendee Solution Sharing Padlet – – – View Registrant Examples of How They Provide SEL
Join Sheri S. Dollin, M.Ed., Educational Consultant and Mindfulness Facilitator, and Sunny Wight, Co-Founder of Mindfulness First, for an overview of mindfulness and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) in the distance learning setting. Together, we will look at how an understanding of trauma, mindfulness and SEL can help us to manage stress while nurturing the scientifically proven “protective factors” that help prevent and manage trauma and mental health issues both for ourselves and our students. We will specifically learn about the brain science of stress, and practice mindfulness techniques you can teach to your students. We’ll also take a look at Mindfulness First’s synchronous and asynchronous online work, and quickly understand that it’s easier than we think to integrate mindfulness and SEL into online classrooms.
Covid-Friendly Outdoor Classroom Infrastructure & Design Webinar September 2, 2020
View Webinar Archive* – – – View Attendee Solutions and Q & A Padlet
View documents and details on outdoor infrastructure at https://www.greenschoolyards.org/outdoor-infrastructure
* we had a Zoom recording mishap and failed to capture SGSO introductory content and Sharon’s introduction. The recorded archive picks up right as Sharon begins sharing content on outdoor classroom infrastructure and design. Learn more about the National Covid-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative, including an archived webinar and handouts at www.greenschoolyards.org/covid-19-overview-outdoor-learning
Join Sharon Danks, a leader of the National COVID-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative (www.greenschoolyards.org/covid-learn-outside), author of Asphalt to Ecosystems, and founder of Green Schoolyards America, to learn about her work supporting the creation of outdoor classrooms for reopening schools.
During her presentation Sharon will:
– Share practical examples to repurpose outdoor school spaces for outdoor learning
– Demonstrate planning scenarios to support assessing your outdoor learning space options
– Share outdoor learning infrastructure planning resources
– Provide examples of COVID-safe outdoor seating and instruction set up
– Provide a brief overview of the National COVID-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative work and resources
Distance Teaching and Learning Virtual Gathering (Fall 2020 Version) August 26, 2020
View Archive – – – Download PDF of Slide Deck
Many months of distance teaching and learning have led to the development of a treasure trove of innovative teaching tools and the launching of new educational program models. For this Virtual Gathering we will offer everyone an opportunity to introduce programs that have been developed/adapted to meet the unique educational needs presented by COVID-19 along with other support resources that have been created to share with educators and families. We would also like to hear about ideas for evaluating the impact of distance teaching efforts. We hope to focus on:
– Online lesson plans and other resources for educators and families
– Non-digital tools and methods being used to continue learning from a distance
– Ideas for evaluating the impact of your distance teaching efforts
Garden Care and Management During Covid-19 Virtual Gathering (Fall 2020 Version) August 19, 2020
View Archive – – – Download PDF of Slide Deck
A lot has changed since we last discussed this topic in April! Join us again to discuss garden care and management (Fall 2020 version). During this virtual gathering School Garden Support Organizations will share how they are supporting their staff, teachers and the community to care for school gardens this fall.
Distance Teaching and Learning Virtual Gathering (Spring 2020 Version) April 15, 2020
View Archive – – – Download PDF of Slide Deck
Garden Care and Management During Covid-19 Virtual Gathering (Spring 2020 Version) April 22, 11am PST
View or Download Archive
Maintaining Fiscal Stability for your SGSO During Covid-1 9 Virtual Gathering April 29, 11am PST
View or Download Archive
Running Your SGSO / Supporting Your Staff During Covid-19 Virtual Gathering
View and/or Download Archive
En español: Enfoques, Retos y Éxitos de los Huertos Educativos: Experiencias Iberoamericanas 10am PST, 5/12/20 View Archive
Este primer webinar en español del SGSO es una co-presentación con su red hermana, la Red Internacional de Huertos Educativos, la RIHE (redhuertos.org, FB: redhuertos), Compartiremos aprendizajes desde las 11 años de construcción de la RIHE, y coordinadores de programas integrantes de la Red en España, Uruguay, Puerto Rico y México nos hablarán de sus motivaciones, estrategias, retos y logros. ¡Queremos escuchar tus propuestas para más actividades en español!
Helda Morales – El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (México) y Red Internacional de Huertos Educativos
Andrea Estrella – Red de Huertos Escolares Sustentables de Madrid y Germinando Espacio Agroecológico
Beatriz Bellenda – Universidad de la República de Uruguay y Programa de Huertas en Centros Educativos
Marisol Dávila – Universidad de Puerto Rico Recinto Utuado y Red Conucos
Bruce Ferguson – El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (México) y Laboratorios para la Vida
Trauma-Informed Education and Horticultural Therapy – 3/12/2020 11am PST / 2pm EST
Due to a technical issue with the archived webinar we do not have an archive of the live webinar. Download the Webinar Slide Deck
There are a multitude of factors that contribute to Adverse Childhood Experiences. During our 60 minute webinar we will introduce definitions and resources to support schools and children through Trauma-informed Education and Horticultural Therapy.
Amy Yillik of Oregon’s High Desert Education Service District will share her work and resources of building a culture of caring for students with trauma. Wanda Stewart, Executive Director of Common Vision and Garden Educator at Hoover Elementary in Oakland, CA, will share stories of how she uses the healing power of the garden to serve her students. Trish Hildinger, Registered Horticultural Therapist and long time school garden instructor, will introduce strategies and philosophy behind using gardens as healing spaces.
Amy Yillik – Culture of Care, High Desert Education Service District
Wanda Stewart – Common Vision
Trish Hildinger, HTR – Horticultural Therapy Santa Cruz
Resources on Trauma Informed Teaching
Resources on Horticultural Therapy
Classroom Management in the Garden – January 28, 2020 View Archive
and View our Forum post with webinar participant contributions.
Employing solid classroom management techniques is a key factor for educational success. In this webinar, we will explore classroom management strategies specifically in the garden setting and the importance they play in creating a successful and sustainable school garden program. Topics covered will include how to create consistent routines, organize equipment, involve volunteers, utilize garden stations, and more!
Presenters include:
National Curriculum Manager Dianna Zeegers from Big Green
Community Manager Russell Sterten from the Edible Schoolyard Project
Education Specialist Sarah Pounders from KidsGardening
District-Run School Garden Programs –December 12, 2019 View Archive
This webinar features district-run school garden program directors from a medium and large school districts sharing their experience and expertise in launching and maintaining district run garden programs. Co-presented as part of the National Farm to School Network’s Partner Open Space presented in partnership with the School Garden Support Organization Network. Find more resources related to district-run school garden programs on our Best Practices Resource page.
Winter Programming for SGSO’s in Northern Climates – October 8, 2019 View Archive
When much of the school year takes place in freezing temperatures, how do SGSO’s keep kids engaged with garden-based learning, and what are other roles that SGSO’s can take on when the garden is dormant? We’ll discuss ways to bring gardening inside, as well as ways to create advocacy, training, and networking opportunities. Presenters include Stefanie Bugash Scopoline from the Wisconsin School Garden Network and Community Groundworks in Wisconsin, Christine Gall from Burlington School Food Project / KidsGardening in Vermont, and Erin Jackson from Gallatin Valley Farm to School in Montana.
Volunteer Management and Community Support Webinar – September 26th, 2019 View Archive
Are you looking to engage your community in building, maintaining and celebrating your garden? School gardens are ideal places to involve the community and school gardens also require significant maintenance so they’re the perfect place to bring people together. Join us as we discuss a few ways in which we have involved the community from regular maintenance with families, weekly volunteer hours, to large work days. We will discuss some of our favorite ways to get people out and excited, ideas for managing large volunteer groups, how to engage consistent volunteers, and help keep your garden looking good. Presented by: Sam Ullery: School Gardens Specialist Office of the State Superintendent of Education Washington, DC and Willa Pohlman Director of Programing and trainings City Blossoms, TBA
Crowdfunding for School Gardens – August 28th, 2019 View Archive
Time and time again, the ability to raise adequate financial support tops the list of challenges of school garden programs both at individual school and SGSO levels. In this webinar we will explore the concept of crowdfunding which is a term broadly used to describe fundraising efforts focused on raising smaller amounts of money from large numbers of people frequently through online and social media efforts. Presenters include Sarah Pounders from KidsGardening, Roger Doiron from Seedmoney.org and Hillary Lyons from Slow Food USA who will each share their experiences with crowdfunding campaigns and tips for SGSO’s interested in pursuing this type of funding.View resources related the Crowdfunding webinar on our forum.
School and Community Farm Stands – May 30th, 2019 View Archive
School gardens can be used to engage the community through school and community farm stands, which take on various issues centered around food access and education. Please join us in a virtual panel discussion where we will dig into some different ways in which farm stands are being implemented and impacting students and the community. This session will follow a unique format and will give a lot of time for audience questions. If you have a question for the panelists, please share it in your registration so that they presenters can seek to answer it.
Panelists will include:Sam Adels & Zoe Markwalter – Hudson Valley SeedMikhaela Mullins – Denver Urban GardensDavid Lazere – DC GreensLyndsey Waugh & Molly Brown – Sprouts Foundation
Summer Camp Programs at School Gardens and Farms – March 26, 2019 View Archive
Looking for ideas to keep your school gardens tended and active during the summer? Are you thinking of new ways to bring garden-based learning to a community garden or farm site? Join us for a webinar on the ins and outs of running kids day camp programs on educational gardens. Erin Jackson, Education Director at Gallatin Valley Farm to School, and Amy Carlson, Garden Education Director at Life Lab, will share their years of experience and resources for creating day camp programs. From promotions to post assessments and everything in between, this hour long webinar will provide you with inspiration and ideas to create or enhance summer programming on your educational garden or farm.
Selecting, Installing and Managing School Garden Bed Systems – January 30th, 2018 View Archive Download a PDF Version
Choosing the best garden bed system for your school garden program can be an important contributing factor to long-term success. When you are working with multiple school garden sites, the number of variables to consider increases and using standardized bed systems with all of your schools can provide both benefits and challenges. In this webinar, we will hear from SGSOs who have developed standard garden bed packages and find out what has worked for them and how they source their materials. Presented by:
- Sarah Pounders, KidsGardening
- Brandi Keller, Texas A&M University AgriLife Extension
- Tim Villard and Darin DeLay, Big Green (Formerly The Kitchen Community)
- Adam Zmick, Gardeneers
Garden To Cafeteria Toolkit – May 22nd, 2018 View Archive
Are you interested in bringing fresh produce from the school garden into the cafeteria to be used in preparation of healthy school lunches? Join us for a webinar that will introduce the new Garden to Cafeteria Toolkit from Slow Food USA and Whole Kids Foundation and describe the ongoing support for Food Service Departments provided by Slow Food USA. On hand will also be Tegan Bernstein of the USDA, contributor to the toolkit, to answer any questions. Our goal is to build a Garden to Cafeteria community to support numerous districts in creating their own Garden to Cafeteria programs using the toolkit.
Equity & Access in the School Garden Movement — October 30, 2018 View Archive
School gardens can be a powerful tool for promoting racial and social equity, but equally important are the ways school garden organizations and school garden educators approach equity and access. Please join Suzannah Holsenbeck of Common Ground, Ida Sobotik of Community Groundworks, and Sam Ullery of the DC Office of State Superintendent of Education as they discuss what equity in school gardens means to their organizations. They will share case studies and offer suggestions for how your organization can tackle issues around equity and access in your work.
School Garden Program Sustainability and Finances — April 25, 2017 View Archive
School gardens are tremendously popular and valuable resources, but these programs often face questions about if they can continue year-to-year. In this Webinar, we discuss dedicated garden program staffing, community engagement, and other factors that lead to programmatic sustainability. We’ll also learn from successful initiatives to secure corporate sponsorships; community partnerships; legislation; and school or district-level investments that lead to financial sustainability. Hosted by: Sam Ulery, School Garden Specialist at the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education’s Division of Wellness and Nutrition
Hosted by: Sam Ulery, School Garden Specialist at the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education’s Division of Wellness and Nutrition
View Best Practices Document on Program Sustainability and join the dialog on Program Sustainability and Finances on our forum.
Maintaining Multiple School Gardens . May 9, 2017 View Archive
All school gardens have one thing in common: they have to be maintained so they can continue to be productive and thriving educational spaces and school resources. In this webinar, viewers will learn about successful approaches that School Garden Support Organizations have used to maintain multiple school gardens. In addition, we will share best practices, tools and resources related to garden maintenance needs throughout the seasons. Hosted by: Stephanie Kichler, National Education Manager at The Kitchen Community; Kyla Van Deusen, Program Manager at Captain Planet Foundation; John Fisher, Director of Programs and Partnerships at Life Lab
View Best Practices Document on Maintaining Multiple School Gardens and join the dialog on Maintaining Multiple School Gardens on our forum.
Identifying and Measuring Impact June 6, 2017 View Archive
Hear how and why School Garden Support Organizations across the nation measure the impact of school garden programming. A wide range of assessment tools and strategies from different organizations will be shared.
Hosted by: Robyn Burns, Program Director, CitySprouts; With Meg Hiesinger, The Ecology Center; Suzannah Holsenbeck, Common Ground – High School Urban Farm and Environmental Education Center; May Tsupros, Gardeneers
View Best Practices Document on Measuring Impact of School Gardens and join the dialog on Maintaining Multiple School Gardens on our forum.
Professional Development Models for Training Garden Educators – September 12, 2017 View Archive
School Garden Support Organizations work to prepare teachers, organization staff, and community volunteers to lead students in garden-based learning activities. Learn different approaches School Garden Support Organizations use to lead high quality professional development for garden educators.
Hosted by: Vanessa Ford, Director of Training & Curriculum Development, REAL School Gardens
View Best Practices Document Professional Development Models for Training Garden Educators on our forum.
Other Archived Webinars on School Garden Topics
EdWeb School Garden Community Webinar Series. This webinar series and online network are a predecessor to the SGSO Network. Many of these webinars were presented by SGSO Network Organizations.
- Regional Support Models for Sustaining School Gardens
- Common Core in the Garden
- Outdoor Classroom Management
- Design Ideas for a Fun, Successful Instructional School Garden
- Inquiry in the Garden
- Square-Foot Gardening & Bigger Beds: Maximizing Your School Garden Space
- From School Garden to Cafeteria Table: How to Plan, Grow, and Use Garden Produce in a School Cafeteria Lunch Program
- Next Generation Science in the Garden
- Healthy Food + Healthy Ecosystems = Healthy Neighborhoods (A Summer Garden Program for Middle School Youth)
- Innovative Ways to Fund Your School Garden Program
- Tools to Create Social Change Through Youth Farming and Gardening
- The Edible Schoolyard Project
- Building a Youth Beekeeping Program
- Skills of a Successful School Garden Coordinator
- Garden to Plate
- Summertime in the School Garden: Exploring Opportunities to Support and Share Your School Garden
- Breaking it Down: School Composting Made Easy with FoodCorps
- Fruit Trees in the School Garden
- Get Food Education in Every School: Join the National Initiative!
- Celebrate National Farm to School Month!
- Raising Funds & Friends for Your School Garden: Hard-Learned Lessons from Granny’s Garden School
- School Gardening in the Fall
- Winter Planning For The Spring School Garden
- Feast for Every Season
- Help Students Discover that TREES ROCK! Classroom Resources & Contest Info from Scotties
Life Lab Webinars
Webinars on Inquiry in the Garden, School Garden Design, Outdoor Classroom Management, NGSS, and more
Slow Food USA School Garden Program Webinars
- Monthly webinars on topics related to running school gardens.
- Also see Slow Food USA Garden to Cafeteria Toolkit view the archive at WholeKids Foundation GoToWebinar channel.
Whole Kids Foundation Webinar Channel
WKF hosts the National School Garden Network Webinars you can find SGSO Webinars in addition to other school garden related webinars.
North American Association of Environmental Educators
Monthly webinars series on relevant topics
National Farm to School Resources – Search: Webinar
- Past related topics:
- Evaluating your Farm to School program – Best practices and tools
- Farm to School: Cooking with Children in the Classroom
- School Gardens vs. Summer Vacation
- Food, Farm and Nutrition Curriculum Connections: Developing Educational Experiences
- Using school garden produce in school food service
- Local and State Governments: Key Partners in Farm to School
USDA Farm to School Community Food Systems Webinars
Offers farm to school themed videos and webinars some of which are focused on school gardens.
Children and Nature Network Webinar Series
Expert instructors offer real-time education on how to create, develop and launch a number of programs designed to encourage children, families and communities to connect with nature.
Kidsgardening.org Webinars
The Edible Schoolyard Project – Google Hangouts
