Kavanah Garden Fieldtrips

Bring your students to Shoresh’s Kavanah Garden for a morning/afternoon of garden and nature-based learning!

All Kavanah Garden school programs are designed to support and enhance the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Science and Technology curriculum while creatively weaving in Jewish texts, teachings, and holiday celebrations. Curriculum links are indicated in italics. NOTE: Programs can be modified to omitt Jewish teachings for public school and secular private school groups.

Kavanah Garden Fieldtrips can be scheduled Tuesday-Friday (morning and afternoon) from May 22 – June 22, 2012 and September 4 - October 19, 2012. Program Fee is $8/student. Teachers and parent volunteers free of charge.

Program Descriptions:

JK/SK – Roots & Shoots
Using all five senses, discover the many sababa (amazing) plants and creatures that live at the Kavanah Garden! Discover where and how plants grow while searching for patterns in the natural world. Patterns, Cycles, and Natural Occurrences.

Grade 1 - Garden Guardians
According to the Talmud, we are forbidden to live in a city without a vegetable garden! Learn what all creatures need to survive by helping take care of the plants and animals that call our garden home. Needs and Characteristics of Living Things; Daily and Seasonal Changes.

Grade 2 – Creatures & Critters
The Talmud teaches us that every creature has a purpose! Discover some of the many different critters that live in our soil, visit our flowers, eat from our birdfeeders, and help our garden grow! Growth and Changes in Animals; Air and Water in the Environment.

Grade 3 – Seeds & Soils
The holidays of Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot all celebrate the harvest! Discover what plants need to grow while helping build healthy garden soil so that we have a bountiful harvest to celebrate this season! Growth and Changes in Plants; Soils in the Environment.

Grade 4 – Healthy Habitats
The Garden of Eden provided the first humans and animals with food, water, and shelter, making it a terrific habitat! Discover what animal, bird, and insect species live in the garden and how the choices we make can affect the health of their habitat. Habitats and Communities.

Grade 5 – Energy & Resource Cycles
The miracle of Chanukah is that one day’s worth of oil lasted for eight! Learn how we can conserve our natural resources while exploring alternative sources of energy. Conservation of Energy and Resources.

Grade 6 – Biodiversity
In the morning prayer service we give thanks for all of the different works of Creation! Investigate the array of different plant and animal species that inhabit our ecosystem. Discover the importance of maintaining diversity and how human choices can greatly affect an ecosystem’s biodiversity. Biodiversity.

Grade 7 – CommUNITY
The central message of the Shema is oneness. Discover the different biotic and abiotic elements that work together seamlessly to sustain the Kavanah Garden’s ecosystem. Investigate how the choices we make can dramatically alter and impact our interconnected environment. Interactions in the Environment.

Grade 8 – Watershed Wonders
Kohelet teaches us that while all streams flow to the sea, the sea is never full. Explore the East Don River at the Kavanah Garden and discover firsthand how the water cycle works, and how the choices we make shape and affect our watershed. Water Systems.

For more information, or to register your class, please e-mail education@shoresh.ca or call 416-805-8382.

In-School Programs

Bring a Shoresh educator to your school/classroom to run a hands-on workshop for your students!

Workshops can include guided nature walks, nature crafts, cooking, and more!

For more information, or to hire a Shoresh educator, please e-mail education@shoresh.ca or call 416-805-8382.

Professional Development/Teacher Training

Interested in bringing Jewish environmental education into your school/classroom? Hire a Shoresh educator to run a creative and engaging workshop with your teachers and educators! Each workshop highlights Judaism’s rich ecological teachings while equipping participants with the resources and activities needed to easily weave Jewish environmentalism into both secular and Jewish studies curriculum.

Work with a Shoresh educator to create a professional development workshop unique to your school or select from a range of workshops, such as:

Jewish Environmental Education 101
Judaism is rich in texts and teachings that encourage and demand us to adopt a strong environmental ethic. In this workshop, participants will study the core sources that frame the Jewish environmental movement while learning fun and hands-on activities to introduce these teachings into their school/classroom.

Jewish Garden-Based Education 101
The Garden of Eden was the first outdoor classroom! Learn how to set up, maintain, and harvest your organic garden (whether it be a few planted containers or a ½ acre field) while practicing and modeling Jewish agricultural laws and environmental ethics. Participants will take away organic gardening resources as well as numerous experiential program and activity ideas to actively engage their students in Jewish garden-based learning.

Jewish Food for Thought
What does Judaism have to say about how we eat? A lot! This workshop will explore some of the core issues being discussed in the Jewish Food Movement (such as brachot, kashrut, vegetarianism, factory farming, GMOs, and fair trade practices) from a uniquely Jewish perspective. Participants will also walk away with activities for students of all ages and abilities that will get them thinking about food…Jewishly.

Lo Tashchit: Judaism and the Art of Waste Reduction
Explore biblical, rabbinic, and contemporary sources around the issue of Waste Reduction. Participants will brainstorm ways to reduce waste in their school/classroom while thinking creatively about how to encourage and enable students to make changes that will conserve our natural resources.

La’Briyut! A Jewish Perspective on Health
This workshop explores health from a uniquely Jewish perspective. Participants will investigate biblical, rabbinic, and contemporary sources offering different definitions of what it means to be healthy, while learning how they can empower students to think about their own health, and the health of their family and community members, through a Jewish lens.

Shoresh also offers a number of other hands-on workshops for adults, all of which can be adapted to a professional development/teacher training context. Click here for more information.

For more information, or to hire a Shoresh educator, please e-mail education@shoresh.ca or call 416-805-8382.

School Greening/Garden Consultation

Are you interested in greening your school/classroom?

Are you applying for EcoSchool certification and looking for support reaching your certification goals?

Are you looking to establish an educational garden on site and not sure where to start?

Bring in a Shoresh educator for on-site consultation!

Elementary Day School Programs