You can plant the first seed of a kitchen garden program

Would you like your child or community to discover the benefits of growing, harvesting, preparing and sharing fresh, seasonal, delicious food?

Passionate families and community members can help plant the first seed of a kitchen garden program at a school or early learning centre, in a few simple steps.

Step 1 is to start a conversation with teachers, educators, principals, centre managers, and school council and parent committee members. You’ll be amazed at the support you can generate for a kitchen garden program once you get the ball rolling.

Step 2 is to check out our website to find out the benefits of a kitchen garden program, and how your school or centre can dig into pleasurable food education.

Here are just a few links to get you started:

• Pleasurable Food Education webpage (scroll down for proof it works)
• Pleasurable Food Education Starter Pack
• Search the Kitchen Garden Community map to find your local kitchen garden schools and centres, and give them a call or visit
• Download our ‘Plant the first seed flyer’

Step 3 is to approach the leadership team at your school or centre and present the information you’ve found about the benefits of pleasurable food education.

This may be as simple as a couple of passionate parents stopping by the principal or centre manager’s office, or it may involve a formal presentation to the school council or parent committee.

Step 4 is to contact us and find out how we can help your school or centre get a kitchen garden program off the ground.

We have a huge array of products and services to help your school or centre run a kitchen garden program.

Here are a few ideas for getting started:

• The Kitchen Garden Classroom – a membership package that provides access to resources, discounts, an online community and ongoing support.
• Delivering Kitchen Garden Classes – a hands-on professional development workshop that provides the ideal introduction to running a kitchen garden program.
• The Getting Started print guide and Getting Started online course are great ways to learn the basics of pleasurable food education.
• If you are in Victoria, check out the Victorian Pleasurable Food Education Package, which includes Kitchen Garden Classroom membership, as well as training, resources and support.

Remember – each school and centre designs a kitchen garden program to suit its own needs. Questions about how the program will be staffed, what infrastructure is required, which year levels will participate, and how often classes will run are for the school or centre to decide, but you can plant the first seed!

Any questions? Contact our friendly Support Team on 13000 SAKGF (13000 72543) or support@kitchengardenfoundation.org.au