The Hawai‘i Island School Garden Network, Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation, Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy, and Mālaʻai: The Culinary Garden of Waimea Middle School present a series of professional development events for school garden educators, classroom teachers, administrators, and others passionate about improving student wellness and cognitive development and engaging deeper learning. This year’s events will focus on the effectiveness of school gardens as an instructional strategy for both nutritional education and hands-on learning in core subject areas.

EVENTS

The Seventh Annual School Learning Garden Symposium
"Awakening the Senses for Deeper Learning"
Saturday, June 7, 2014 — 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy – GPAC Auditorium (Upper Campus),
65-1692 Kohala Mountain Rd, Waimea, Hawai‘i Island (view campus map)
Earlybird Registration available – register by May 15 and save $10!

A full day of educational workshops, presentations, and speakers will inspire and guide educators to integrate essential educational curriculum into school learning garden settings. The 2013-14 cohort of the Kū ‘Āina Pā school garden teacher training program will present their yearlong individual professional development research and reflection projects at the Symposium. Keynote speaker Dr. Carla Hannaford, an award-winning author, biologist, and educator, will offer insights into the importance of engaging more than just students' minds but their hands and hearts as well. A panel of Hawai‘i health and education leaders will address student wellness and connections with deeper learning.

»Download the SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULE (Subject to change)«

Registration Fees: $50 per person by May 15, $60 per person May 16-June 4. Registration includes breakfast, lunch by Slow Food Hawai‘i, and conference materials. Registrations will be accepted at the door for $60 per person, cash or check only. At-the-door registrations do NOT include meals.

Scholarships are available to help attendees offset the cost of registration and air travel from neighbor islands. The Hawai‘i Island School Garden Network is offering 10 scholarships to Hawai‘i Island teachers to cover registration (download Registration Scholarship Application, due April 30) and Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation is offering 25 travel scholarships to outer-island attendees to cover travel expenses, up to $200 (download Travel Scholarship Application, due May 17).

ʻĀINA In Schools Garden & Nutrition Curriculum Training
Presented by Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation
Sunday, June 8, 2014 – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy – Student Union (Upper Campus),
65-1692 Kohala Mountain Rd, Waimea, Hawai‘i Island (view campus map)

A special training for educators planning to use ʻĀINA In Schools lessons with their students. This workshop will cover standards-based garden units that are written for grades K (Butterfly Garden/Tops & Bottoms Garden), 1 (Little Seeds, Big Plants/Good Buddies Garden), 4 (Hawaiian Garden), and 5 (Scientific Garden/Three Sisters Garden). The training will also cover the ʻĀINA In Schools nutrition education units, which include eight standards-based nutrition lessons for grades 2 and 6. All garden and nutrition units can be adapted for use with other grade levels. The workshop will also include a brief overview of the ʻĀINA In Schools composting curriculum and a review of Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation’s many helpful resources for educators. Learn more about the ʻĀINA In Schools program at www.kokuahawaiifoundation.org/aina.

Registration Fee:  $35 includes handouts; thumb drive with digital copies of lesson plans, visual aids, and resource guides; nutrition food guide poster; and lunch.

Kū ‘Āina Pā Summer Intensive
“Growing the Connections: Common Core and STEM in the School Garden”
Monday, June 9–Wednesday, June 11, 2014 – 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day
Māla‘ai: The Culinary Garden of Waimea Middle School,
67-1229 Mamalahoa Hwy, Waimea, Hawai‘i Island

A three-day workshop for K-8 classroom teachers, this year’s Kū ‘Āina Pā Summer Intensive will deepen basic garden skills and curriculum development with presentations, hands-on work in the Māla‘ai Culinary Garden, and learning to use Lifelab’s “The Growing Classroom” and database. Common Core standards are connected to every lesson. Afternoons include teamwork by grade level, connecting STEM projects to the morning’s lessons and themes. Schools are encouraged to register teams of two or more teachers.

Registration Fees: $300 for Kū ‘Āina Pā three-day intensive, includes textbook and lunch each day. Class is limited to 25. Limited lodging is available at Waiaka House on Sunday, June 8; Monday, June 9; and Tuesday, June 10 for $30 per person per night (includes breakfast).
$100 additional for three (3) PDE3 credits; portfolios due December 1, 2014.

Waimea School Garden Tours with Dr. Ming Wei Koh
Thursday, June 12, 2014, 8:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Meet at Waiaka House, large white house at the end of the lane across Highway 19 from Waimea Transfer Station (view campus map)

A tour of school learning gardens in Waimea, including Kanu O Ka ‘Āina, Waimea Country School, and Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy-Ulumau.

Registration Fee: $40, includes lunch and ground transportation to school gardens. 

TRAVEL AND ACCOMMODATIONS

The following airlines fly to Hawai‘i Island:
Hawaiian Airlines – Kailua-Kona, Hilo
Mokulele Airlines – Kailua-Kona, Waimea-Kohala (limited schedule)

All events are held in the Waimea area (also referred to as Kamuela) in the north-central part of Hawai‘i Island (map). Driving time between Kailua-Kona and Waimea is about one hour; between Hilo and Waimea about one hour twenty minutes. There are many bed and breakfasts and small inns in the Waimea area, as well as hotels and resorts along the South Kohala coast. Click here for a list of suggested accommodations.

These events are sponsored by The Kohala Center, Kōkua Hawai‘i Foundation, Hawai‘i Preparatory Academy, and Mālaʻai: The Culinary Garden of Waimea Middle School.

The Kohala Center is an equal opportunity provider and employer.