Are you looking to grow and sustain a school garden? Do you want to start small with a worm composting bin using red wigglers you can keep in your classroom? Are you looking for teacher-tested ideas for developmentally appropriate school gardening activities? Do you want to help your young scientists make careful observations about how the plants around your school and our desert change from season to season? Look no further! This strand will be facilitated by national recognized school gardeners who have started and supported many school garden programs. Get your hands dirty as you learn from these experts and make a plan for where you will start and how you will grow and sustain your own school (or classroom) garden. No gardening experience or green thumb required. Wear the student hat as you explore how to integrate science and other subjects into school garden activities and then put on your teacher hat to consider modifications and adjustments for your particular school/classroom situation and the gardeners you teach. Teachers attending this strand will receive a STEMAZing Kit worth over $300 to bring all of the activities they are using to life in their own classrooms.
You are not allowed to attend this strand if you participated in the school gardens strand during 2019-2022 STEMAZing Institutes. We hope your gardening and vermiculture is going well but want to let other educators take advantage of the same opportunity you had.
STEMAZing Kit: All participants will have a kit waiting for them at Escuela Manzo on the first day of the institute on June 13th. At the end of the final in-person session on Thursday, June 15th, participants will take all components of their kits home with them.
Audience: PreK-12th Grade Teachers from Southern Arizona
(In order to maximize the impact of this workshop, only educators who work directly with students will be allowed to register and receive a kit. Please contact Amanda McPherson; amanda.mcpherson@pima.gov if you would like to attend but are in an administrative role.)
Facilitators: Moses Thompson – Director at UA School Garden Program and Stacy Evans - garden educator at Escuela Manzo and their amazing team
Location:
Cost: $75 for three days of world-class professional development AND a STEMAZing Kit valued at more than $300
Course Dates: Tuesday, June 13 - Thursday, June 15, 2023
Special thanks to the 2023 STEMAZing Institute title sponsor, Tucson Electric Power! The generous STEMAZing Kits of equipment and supplies teachers receive would not be possible without their continued support.
This workshop is part of the STEMAZing Institute. The STEMAZing Project’s philosophy on teacher professional development is simple: It must be hands-on and engaging – putting the educators in the seat of the students to experience STEM lessons firsthand. It must provide the educators with the equipment and supplies they need to implement the lessons and activities in their classrooms the next day if they choose. It must be facilitated by master educators who have themselves been in the classroom.
Media Policy:
The Pima County School Superintendent's Office and its partners often take photographs and videos during events and workshops as they occur. By registering for this event and/or workshop you are granting permission to use these images to promote our programs in print, on the web, and on social media.
Payment Policy
Payments must be received five (5) business days prior to the start of the class. Payments can be in the form of a check, credit card, P-Card, or a school purchase order. Registrations within the five (5) day window must be paid immediately upon registering for the course.
Attendance Policy
You are required to attend all sessions of the STEMAZing Institute strand. If you miss a session without prior consent from the organizer, you will be asked to return your STEMAZing Kit or you will be charged for its full value.
