This exciting program has been designed to align with National Australian Curriculum Requirements.
It provides groups of students from pre-school to senior primary with hands-on experiences in an engaging outdoor learning environment.
Children will undertake activities that utilise play and exploration, exciting their natural sense of wonder and engaging all the senses.
The Kitchen Garden showcases the benefits of growing fresh, healthy produce instilling healthy habits from a young age.
Each lesson will be 60 minutes in duration and led by a qualified Kitchen Garden Educator with the support of program volunteers.
Lessons are available for classes of children from early years (minimum 4 yrs old) to Year 7 and are held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
The general public are welcome to visit the Little Sprouts Kitchen Garden when sessions are not being held.
Please contact us at DEWBGSchools@sa.gov.au or 8222 9344 if you would like to discuss a future booking or if you would like any assistance in planning a future visit.
Group size (per session): Minimum 12, maximum 30
Lesson duration: One hour
Day: Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays
Fees: $7.50 per student (minimum total cost of $150 per lesson), $5.50 per student (minimum total of $110) for Department for Education Category 1-4 Disadvantaged Schools.
All prices are GST inclusive and schools will be invoiced following the visit.
Programs are not suitable for play groups.
The Little Sprouts Kitchen Garden Early Years Learning Program allows children to explore the wonders of a kitchen garden environment through a range of fun and engaging learning opportunities.
Guided by a qualified kitchen garden educator, the program is hands-on and sensory in nature and aligned to the Early Years Learning Framework. The Kitchen Garden also showcases the benefits of growing fresh, healthy produce to the whole community, instilling healthy habits from a young age.
The Little Sprouts Kitchen Garden Primary Program has a focus on STEM learning. Students and their teachers will use the kitchen garden environment as a research tool to develop their scientific biological conceptual knowledge of the structure and function, diversity and evolution and interdependence of plants.
The sessions are inquiry-based, tailored to address specific year level Australian Curriculum outcomes and provide a springboard for teachers to continue learning experiences back at their sites. Technology is employed to support the learning with engineering and mathematical tasks either embedded in the program or explicit in the recommended post visit activities for students.
For help planning your visit and ideas on pre and post-visit activities download this booklet.
The safety and wellbeing of our visitors, volunteers and staff remains our highest priority. We have implemented new COVID-19 compliant protocols to offer a safe and fun experience for all groups that attend our programs.
Measures include:
Please note: in the event that one of our Botanic Garden’s staff members is feeling unwell on the day of your visit, the staff member will be required to stay home. This is to ensure that no students or adults from your school are placed at risk. If this occurs, we will work with you to provide an alternative to your booked session.
The Little Sprouts Kitchen Garden is an excellent environment to foster STEM thinking and learning.
This Gardens of Wonder eBook describes early years research that follows the journey of two preschools' children, educators and families as they research STEM learning in the garden together.
FREE to download, this research follows the principals of Reggio Emilia by valuing the child’s voice.
Children, educators and families work together to design the learning. It also highlights the importance that pedagogical documentation plays in encouraging children’s STEM thinking.
The eBook includes short videos and resources to support educators with STEM learning design and questioning.
It is a thought-provoking way for you and your colleagues to reflect on, and to stimulate your thinking to improve your STEM site practice.
For alternative arrangements or other enquiries, please contact:
Kitchen Garden Education
(08) 8222 9343
DEWLittleSproutsVisitingProgram@sa.gov.au
Stay up-to-date with all things Little Sprouts by subscribing to the Little Sprouts Kitchen Garden monthly newsletter and by reading the Little Sprouts Blog.
20 April 2023
Have you noticed a strange looking unit near the First Creek Wetlands at Adelaide Botanic Garden? Did you know this machine is collecting valuable biodiversity data which will be used to safeguard South Australia's Myrtleceae trees against a deadly disease.
03 April 2023
We caught up with Mount Lofty Botanic Garden horticultural supervisor Mark Oborn to get some insider tips for visiting the garden during autumn colours.
