This curriculum includes a basic introduction to the garden and the life cycle of plants for the youngest students, and expands to include the health of the broader community and capstone projects for sixth graders. The rhythms, cycles, and systems of the natural world are explored through the five senses and experiential, inquiry-based activities.

Students have an opportunity to develop both as members of a team, and as leaders. A child’s natural curiosity will be encouraged, while developing practical gardening skills. And applying the scientific method. They will be able to discuss the nutrient cycle, and the basic life cycle. Students will be versed in the importance of composting and recycling, and will know how to identify common garden plants and animals. 

Although this curriculum is designed to provide a scope and sequence of learning and skills that fulfill common core requirements, we encourage you to find activities that you and your students love, and keep coming back to them. 

The Numi Foundation is deeply grateful to the writers of open-source materials for their inspiration and contributions to this curriculum.

How to use the curriculum

We created the NUMI curriculum with flexibility in mind.  For after-school and extracurricular programs working with multiple ages of students, you might choose to download the entire K-6 curriculum and search for lessons by themes that you are working on.  For classroom teachers, you can download each grade-level independently and move through the entire curriculum which is designed with 2 related activities each week for the entire school year. 

Gardening K-6 Suggested Quick-Start Lesson Plans
Gardening Master K-6
Gardening Mixed-Age Groups/After-School
Gardening Kindergarten
Gardening Grade 1
Gardening Grade 2
Gardening Grade 3
Gardening Grade 4
Gardening Grade 5
Gardening Grade 6

“For children who live in “food deserts” and typically have to buy groceries in a liquor store, our gardening programs have provided a transformational leadership opportunity that combats childhood obesity and promotes healthy, nutritious lifestyles for both our students and their families.” – Reem Rahim, Co-Founder