Why School Gardens?
School gardens joyfully engage students and staff, improve academic performance, develop technical skills, promote social skills, and encourage healthy lifestyles. There is a large body of research that shows The Benefits of School Gardens, including the positive impact on students' grades, knowledge, attitudes, physical health, and behavior. Research also shows that school gardens contribute to stronger connections between the school community, the surrounding community, and nature.
How does the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) support school gardens in the District?
The OSSE School Gardens Program is primarily responsible for supporting school gardens in the District and envisions a future in which all District youth are engaged in high-quality school garden programs. This program is a part of the OSSE’s Division of Health and Wellness and contributes to the division’s: “Healthy bodies and minds are the foundation of academic success.” The OSSE Division of Health and Wellness leverages programming, partnerships, policy, and data to remove health barriers to learning so that people of all ages and backgrounds are prepared to succeed in school and life. The Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Model is the foundation for this work at OSSE and may be used as a best practice by school garden programs to achieve healthy student development and academic achievement.
For more information about the state of school gardens in the District, review the Healthy Schools Act Farm to School and School Gardens Reports. For general information about school gardens in the District, check out this short video. To learn more about the history of school gardens in the United States including in Washington, DC, review A Brief History of School Gardens.
“We bring communities together in our garden. People of all different races, religions, and sexual orientations gather and have the experience of a lifetime. We make fabulous foods, talk about what’s going on socially and emotionally, and have tons of fun!”- Eastern High School Student
Gratitude and Acknowledgements
The District is home to many organizations, community members, and schools working to create opportunities for children and youth to experience, care for, and learn in their school gardens. OSSE is grateful to the many community and school partners that shared their expertise to make this guide a comprehensive, relevant, and accessible resource. This guide was made possible with the generous, collaborative, and thoughtful feedback from many individuals and DC Government offices.
“We have different gardens in our big garden [...]. My favorite is the bug garden […]. All you have to do is lift a rock and you will see all kinds of different bugs. It was amazing how many bugs there are. I also like the butterfly garden. It is shaped like a butterfly and has a butterfly in it. There are plants in it so butterflies can settle on it. The butterfly garden is beautiful.”- Stoddert Elementary School Student
Works Cited
- Burt, K. G., Burgermaster, M., Jacquez, R. (2018). Predictors of school garden integration: Factors critical to gardening success in New York City. Health Education & Behavior, 45(6), 849 –854.
- Burt, K. K., Koch, P. A., Uno, C. & Contento, I. R. (2016). The GREEN Tool (Garden Resources,
- Education, and Environment Nexus) For Well-Integrated School Gardens. Laurie M. Tisch Center for Food, Education & Policy at the Program in Nutrition, Teachers College, Columbia University.
- Burt, K. G., Luesse, H. B., Rakoff, J., Ventura, A., & Burgermaster, M. (2018). School gardens in the United States: Current barriers to integration and sustainability. American Journal of Public Health, 108(11), 1543-1549.
- Hirschi, J. (2012). Take the Common Core Outdoors. Harvard Education Letter.
- Hazzard, E. L., Moreno, E., Beall, D. L., & Zidenberg-Cherr, S. (2011). Best Practices Models for Implementing, Sustaining, and Using Instructional School Gardens in California. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 43(5), 409-413.
- Hoover, A., Vandyousefi, S., Martin, B., Nikah, K., Cooper, M.H., Muller, A., Marty, E., Duswalt-Epstein, M., Burgermaster, M., Waugh, L., Linkenhoker, B., & Davis, J.N., (2021). Barriers, strategies, and resources to thriving school gardens. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 53(7), 591-601.