Toronto Botanical Garden

SCHOOL PROGRAMS (Fall, Winter & Spring)

Registration for fall classes is open. Fall classes begin September 23.

Interactive Education
Each of our Kindergarten to Grade Four programs is designed to support and enhance the Ontario Ministry of Education's Science and Technology Curriculum. Download our colour brochure!

Our programs may include any of the following:

scavenger hunts
nature walks
planting bulbs, seeds, or succulents
discovering the recipe for perfect soil
visiting our red wiggler worms
exploring the interactive learning stations in The James Boyd Children's Centre

Please Note: ALL Teaching Garden programs include outdoor components, and teachers must ensure that their classes are properly dressed for the weather. Outdoor programs will ONLY be moved inside in the event of severe or dangerous weather.

Self-guided Tour
For visiting classes: TBG Children’s staff know that school resources are often limited, and that sharing busses can help more students experience exciting class trips. For classes arriving for the day, teachers are invited to download our new self-guided tour and accompanying activity sheets. The self-guided tour is designed to help teachers and students explore Toronto Botanical Garden and Edwards Gardens before or after their scheduled program time. If you would like to book a self-guided tour along with your program call 416-397-1355.

Download the self-guided tour here.
Download primary activity sheets here.
Download junior activity sheets here.

Registration Information

Important information about our Interactive School Programs. Please read carefully:

Programs are offered both outdoors in the Toronto Botanical Garden's Teaching Garden or indoors in The James Boyd Children's Centre
Outdoor programs are available from April until June, and September until freeze up (October-November)
Indoor programs are available from September until June
Programs are offered from Tuesday to Friday
Morning sessions take place between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. Afternoon sessions take place between 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.
$7 registration fee per student for all programs
Schools must provide one adult supervisor for every five students. The total number of supervisors includes teachers, but does not include EAs or other one-on-one adults for special needs students.
All required adults do not pay a registration fee. Any adults exceeding this number must pay the student registration fee.
Maximum of 30 students per program. Classes larger than 30 must be approved by program staff.

Register Today !
Downloads (pdf): Registration Form
To register by telephone, call 416-397-1355
email childrensprograms@torontobotanicalgarden.ca.

Please leave a detailed message with your school name, class size, preferred date and program. Registrations are accepted strictly on a first-come basis. Register early for best selection.

(Lines in italics refer to topics identified in the Ontario Curriculum)

Kindergarten: Munchkins in the Garden OUTDOORS
[TG08STMG] Seasonal changes in the garden are the focus of this program. Children will use their five senses to explore the natural world. They will learn about cycles in nature by planting bulbs in the fall and seeds in the spring.
Patterns, Cycles, and Natural Occurrences

Grade One: Eyes on Life OUTDOORS
[TG08STEL] Do plants and people need the same things to survive? Through hands-on exploration in the garden, students will compare the needs of all living things. Children will learn how plant and animal behaviours and characteristics change with the seasons.
Characteristics and Needs of Living Things
Daily and Seasonal Cycles

Grade Two: Garden Dwellers OUTDOORS
[TG08STGD] What makes the Teaching Garden a great home? The activities in this program allow students to discover the wide range of creatures that use the garden environment to meet their needs all through the year.
Growth and Changes in Animals

Grade Two: Amazing Animals INDOORS
[TG08SJAA] Do all creatures have bones? What does the world look like through bug eyes? What is metamorphosis? Children will be able to answer these questions and more as they explore our collection of animals and insects. Students will take home a self-designed seed packet to start their own butterfly habitat.
Growth and Changes in Animals

Grade Three: That’s Not Dirt! OUTDOORS
[TG08STND] Soil is much more than the ground beneath our feet! Through hands-on activities, students will explore the formation and components of the organic and inorganic parts of soil. They will also meet the friendly decomposers that are always hard at work in the Teaching Garden.
Soils in the Environment

Grade Three: From the Ground on Down INDOORS
[TG08SJFG] Take a close look at the ground! There’s a world of life below our feet. Children will get up close and personal with the fungi and decomposers who make soil, discover the inorganic parts of soil and make the perfect soil for a succulent, then take it home.
Soils in the Environment

Grade Three: Growing Green OUTDOORS
[TG08STGG] Plants come in all shapes and sizes! Hands-on activities will help children understand the importance of all plants, from the tallest trees to the tiniest sprouts. Students will examine the patterns that we share with plants, and plant their own seeds.
Growth and Changes in Plants

Grade Three: Plant Pandemonium INDOORS
[TG08SJPP] Children will explore how seeds travel, create a living necklace, get a close-up look at a flower and meet our insect-eating plants. Students will learn the basic properties and patterns that plants share and how all life relies on these green beings.
Growth and Changes in Plants

Grade Four: Where the Wild Things Roam OUTDOORS
[TG08STWW] This hands-on program introduces students to the busy community of birds, insects, plants and animals that live in the Teaching Garden. Students will investigate the connections between living things that share the same habitat and learn how they respond to seasonal changes.
Habitats and Communities

Grade Four: Who Needs Habitat? INDOORS
[TG08SJWH] Students are introduced to fundamental habitat concepts through interactive games. Interactive stations allow students to explore fascinating aspects of carnivores, herbivores, decomposers and producers up close and personal!
Habitats and Communities

Your opinion matters to us.
Please fill out a copy of our Teacher Evaluation and email or fax to:
E childrensprograms@torontobotanicalgarden.ca
F 416-397-1354