Call for Presenters
We Will Learn So Much From One Another!
We aspire to build a constellation of stars, generously sharing ideas and resources with one another in support of vibrant school garden programs for all children.
Workshop Sessions, Lesson/Cooking Demonstrations, Short Course, Field Trips & Main Stage Lightning Talks Presenters receive $100 registration discount.
Summit Presenter Timeline
August 3rd 11:59 pm – Calls for Presenter Proposals Due
Session Presenter Notifications to be sent the week of September 11-15.
Questions? summit@sprouts.com
60-Minute Workshop Sessions
What: 60-minute workshops on summit themes. Some availability to present outdoors.
When: Workshop sessions will be held on Saturday, March 16 – Monday, March 18th, 2024
2022 Workshop Presentation
The Story of Our Food: Gardening & Cooking to Build Awareness and Acceptance of Cultures
Zach O’Donnell & Regi Jones – Edible Schoolyard New Orleans
45 Minute Outdoor Lesson or Cooking Classroom Lesson Demonstrations
Outdoor Lesson Demonstrations
Outdoor Garden Themed Lesson session leaders will teach a hands-on outdoor lesson designed for K-12 students. These sessions will be repeated in two, consecutive 45-minute sessions with a half hour break in between. Up to 30 participants.
The Outdoor Lesson spaces will take place around the hotel property on lawn or turf areas surrounded by landscaping shrubbery. See photos of hotel outdoor spaces. Shade structures, projection and amplification will not be provided outdoors.
Classroom Cooking Demonstrations
Indoor Classroom Cooking Lesson session leaders will teach a cooking classroom session designed for K-12 students. These sessions will be repeated in two, consecutive 45-minute sessions with a half hour break in between. Up to 30 participants.
Indoor Classroom Cooking Sessions we will have a great team of volunteers to support most equipment needs, ingredient sourcing/washing, compost bin, removal of borrowed equipment, and removal of extra ingredients/compost.
How do demo lessons and cooking sessions differ from workshop sessions?
Demonstration lesson sessions are 45 minutes total (including an introduction, the demo lesson, and time to debrief), and will be presented two times in a row. They will be presented outdoors, or in an indoor cooking classroom. We will limit attendance to 30 via a sign up process. Workshop sessions are 60 minutes. Most all workshop sessions will be presented indoors with attendance up to 100 attendees.
Share a 5-minute inspiring story or concept in a concurrent session for ~80 people or on the main stage for ~500 people.
What: Lightning Talks often include storytelling and the engaging presentation of an exciting idea. For more information on Lightning Talks, click here, and/or watch videos of Main Stage Lighting Talks from the 2022 Summit here.
When: Lightning Talks will be presented as part of a concurrent Lighting Talk Hour. Each session room will host 5-6 lightning talk presenters who will present back-to-back. There will be lightning talks happening in 5 rooms simultaneously.
Additionally, there will be an opportunity for a small number of lighting talks to be presented to the entire Summit audience from the main stage during a general session. You will have the opportunity to note in your proposal if you would like to be considered to share your lighting talk on the main stage.
2022 Main Stage Lightning Talk
The Beauty of Color Beyond Garden Beds
Honi Alexander – Galveston’s Own Farmers’ Market
Short Courses
What: Short Courses are deeper dives into a content area and will be based on-site at the hotel. Access to outdoor hotel grounds space is an option. Lunch and conference room space will be provided. Short courses may last up to 4 hours and will include a 45 minute lunch break.
When: Short Courses will take place Saturday, March 16 from approximately 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.
Local Field Trips
What: Field Trips are off site excursions to school and garden program sites, lunch and bus transportation will be provided.
When: Field Trips will take place Saturday, March 16. Buses leave from Torrey Pines Hilton no later than 10am and return to hotel no later than 2pm.
Field Trip hosts are invited to apply for a site enhancement grant to support the preparation of their tour sites. See details and apply in the application.
Preview Field Trip Application Questions
San Diego School Garden Site
Darnall Charter School Garden and Cooking Program
Summit Themes
Presentation topics should fall within one of these themes to align with the Summit’s educational goals.
Workshops in this theme will focus on what and how we teach in garden classrooms. Topics under the theme of what we teach might include connecting the garden with Next Generation Science or Common Core standards; project-based learning; garden-enhanced nutrition curriculum; lessons that promote nature connection;; youth leadership and empowerment; lessons on climate change or regenerative agriculture; and the like. We will look for a balance of workshops to address different age ranges. Topics under the theme of how we teach might include district adoption of garden curriculum; sequencing garden lessons throughout the year; hybrid indoor/outdoor learning; outdoor classroom management; supporting Special Education in the garden; and the like.
Workshops in this theme will focus on the physical elements of school gardens and outdoor classroom spaces, with an emphasis on elements that support learning, ease of maintenance, and long-term sustainability. Topics may include school gardening basics, promising practices in garden maintenance, youth- or community-led school garden design, and the like.
Workshops in this theme will focus on how we can use school gardens to promote student wellness, including nutrition/healthy eating, mindfulness, and social-emotional wellbeing. Topics might include using gardens to address health inequities, to provide students with regular access to nature, to teach about food systems and food justice, to engage in physical education, and/or to provide an upstream approach to community health. Workshops in this theme might also include guidance for leading cooking classes, taste taste testing programs, garden to cafeteria programs, and other forms of edible education.
Workshops in this theme will focus on promising practices for effectively training and supporting school garden educators, including interns, volunteers, classroom teachers, pre-service teachers, and/or SGSO staff. Topics may also include pathway models that provide participants in SGSO programs with opportunities to step into educator or leadership roles within SGSOs.
Workshops in this theme will explore how school garden programs can engage in mutually supportive partnerships, such as with students’ families, local communities, Boys and Girls’ Clubs, after-school programs, school food service, the health care sector, chefs, farm to school, wellness committees, colleges and universities, and the like. This theme could also include workshops on youth-led micro-enterprise programs.
Workshops in this theme will focus on what current research tells us about the impacts of garden education, and also effective ways to assess the impacts of our garden programs and share those impacts with others. Workshops in this theme may include summaries of findings from school garden researchers, and practical tips for assessing outcomes related to academics, nutrition, social-emotional wellbeing, student agency, engagement, and more. Workshops may also include methods for sharing the impacts of garden education, such as storytelling, developing compelling annual reports, creating videos, and the like. Additionally, workshops in this theme may cover how to develop programs that are driven by and responsive to research.
Workshops in this theme will explore the big ideas around what we can achieve together, for example in terms of advocacy, policy change, and coalition building.
Workshops in this theme will focus on ways to make school garden programs resilient and sustainable over time. Topics in this theme may include long-term funding models, and creating or supporting a culture of garden-based learning at a school, district, or regional level.
Workshops in this theme will focus on how we can best serve all of our students and colleagues and disrupt systems of oppression within our workplaces and within our teaching. Topics might include culturally responsive garden curriculum, affinity groups, hiring practices to reflect the populations we serve, restorative justice in the garden, supporting diverse learners, and the like.
Workshops in this theme will focus on organizational effectiveness. Topics may include fair and equitable hiring practices, strategic planning, logic models, digital tools for running your organization, fundraising, methods for making meetings more effective, and the like.