SCHOOL VISIT DETAILS
Dates: School programs for the 2024/2025 school year are offered from September 16 to November 1, 2024 and April 7 to June 13, 2025. School programs are offered Tuesday through Friday. Complete an online booking request (below) to book your visit.
Group size: Maximum of 30 students per program; two programs can run simultaneously.
Grades: We offer programs for preschool students (spring only), Kindergarten, and Grades 1 to 5. Click the links to the right for program descriptions.
FEES
- Half-day programs (1.5 – 2 hours): $10+HST per student, per program. Classes interested in staying for the full day must sign up for Hike-in-a-Bag ($1+HST extra per student), and they cannot be guaranteed indoor lunch space.
- Full-day programs (3 – 4 hours with 30 min lunch break): $16+HST per student
- Preschool programs (1 -1.5 hours): $12+HST per adult-child pair
- Adult supervisors: There is no charge for each adult supervisor for every five students; no charge for special needs assistants. Additional adults pay the same price as the students. This cost does not apply to preschool programs.
Changes in group size must be confirmed three days in advance. Otherwise, you will be charged for at least the number of students you booked.
All teaching garden programs are outdoors, except in severe weather; please ensure students are properly dressed for the weather.
All food brought to these programs should be nut-free.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS
All programs take place outdoors. All Garden Programs include the opportunity to plant or harvest in the Toronto Botanical Garden’s Teaching Garden. Hike Programs include activities throughout TBG Gardens, nature trails and along Wilket Creek. Hike in a Bag is a self-guided optional add on to all school programs.
Indoor programs are available on special request or when the weather prohibits an outdoor program.
GARDEN PROGRAMS
Preschool – Sing For Spring [TG23SPSS]
Sing for Spring focuses on sensory activities, songs, storytelling and caregiver-child interactions. The program takes place in the Teaching Garden and surrounding arboretum. Sing for Spring is recommended for groups that need or want to bring one adult for every child. Caregivers participate alongside the children, enjoying the spring weather, and plant a seed in the garden. (Available April through June only)
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Early Learning for Every Child Today
Kindergarten – Munchkins in the Garden [TG23SPMG]
Touch and explore nature! Munchkins in the Garden is comprised of two parts – full-class guided exploration activities, and small-group, hands-on learning. Students will have the opportunity to plant a seed or bulb in the Teaching Garden’s organic vegetable beds, touch and learn about composter worms and explore the colours, sounds and textures of the garden and arboretum.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: The Kindergarten Program, 2016
Grade 1 – Eyes on Life [TG23SPEL]
What do plants and animals need to live? Are they the same things? Through hands-on activities and dramatic games, students will learn about plants and animals to find out the difference.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Characteristics and Needs of Living Things
Grade 2 – Garden Dwellers [TG23SPGD]
Can you guess which animals make the Toronto Botanical Garden their home? You might be surprised at the answer! Students will discover the wide range of creatures that live here and learn how they meet their needs all year long.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Growth and Changes in Animals
Grade 3 – Soil: That’s Not Dirt! [TG23SPND]
Soil is so much more than dirt! Through hands-on activities, students will become soil detectives to explore the formation process and explore the components of the organic and inorganic parts of soil.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS – Soils in the Environment
Grade 3 – Plants: Growing Green [TG23SPGG]
Plants come in all shapes and sizes! Examining the tallest to the smallest with hands-on activities helps children to understand the importance of all plants.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Growth and Changes in Plants
Grade 4 – Where the Wild Things Roam [TG23SPWW]
Hands-on activities and outdoor games introduce habitat concepts and the busy community of birds, insects, plants, and mammals that live in our gardens and ravine.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Habitats and Communities
HIKE PROGRAMS
Grade 4 – Rocks and Minerals [TG23SPRM]
Students will learn the differences between rocks and minerals as they hike through Edwards Gardens and the Wilket Creek ravine. A game will familiarize students with the rock cycle and the differences between igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. And, students will put their geological knowledge into practice by attempting to identify rocks.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Rocks, Minerals, and Geological Processes
Grade 6 – Garden Biodiversity Study [TG23SPGB]
Biodiversity is the variety of life forms in one area such as plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms. This Garden Biodiversity workshop will explore biodiversity at several assessment areas in the Garden. Students will learn about the importance of biodiversity, collect the number of species present in a given area and calculate a biodiversity index.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS: Biodiversity
SELF-GUIDED ADD-ON OPTION
All Grades – Hike-in-a-Bag [TG23SPHB]
If you wish to remain for the full day or to have lunch on the grounds, you may do so by adding on our optional Hike-in-a-bag program to your registration. This program allows TBG school program participants to stay on the grounds without procuring a picnic or group visit permit from the city.
If you sign up for this additional program, you will borrow an activity-filled backpack and map of the grounds. This backpack will identify you to city staff as participants in a TBG program. Inside the backpack are simple materials to help you guide your students in an exploration of the gardens. You may choose to do some or all of these activities, or you can plan your own activities.
Hike-in-a-bag adds $1 to the per-student cost of your trip.
CANCELLATION POLICY
Cancellations must be made at least two weeks in advance. If a program is canceled less than two weeks prior to the scheduled date, the projected cost of the program must be paid in full by the school.
