SchoolArts - October 2008

All Levels

Designing
School Gardens

Kurt Van Dexter

Schoolyards are a blank canvas of opportunity for students, teachers, and the community to create long-lasting physical and psychological changes in their schools and communities. Through design, art teachers can guide their students, providing them with the tools to work in the world of spatial design. You also strengthen their creative and critical thinking skills while encouraging them to make a positive difference in the world around them.

In leading your students in the design and construction of school gardens and gathering spaces, you are providing them real-life opportunities and lifelong skills.

The multidisciplinary process of schoolyard garden design combines art and design, math, science, and writing. Spatial design may appear at first to be intimidating, but it will not be a daunting task if the design process is followed.

Follow with a Site Analysis
Consider all aspects of the exist-
ing conditions and determine
how these features may help you
develop design concepts. For
example, what areas are in full
sun, full shade, or in between?
7HERE ARE THE PREVAILING WINDS
COMING FROM 7HERE IS THE ACCESS
to water? Is there a working spigot
near the proposed garden area?

How to Begin Begin by determining what you intend to achieve. Perhaps this will be a floral garden with an outdoor classroom gathering space, a garden where students will learn to grow their own vegetables, or a series of learning spaces tied to the curriculum. The following is an abbreviated version of the design process that I find works well in classroom situations.

Questions to Consider

s 7HAT IS THE FOCUS OF THIS GARDEN
DESIGN PROJECT 7HAT DO WE WANT TO
achieve?
s 7HO ELSE MAY BE INTERESTED IN
helping to make this project hap-
pen?
s )S IT GOING TO BE A MASTER PLAN OF
the entire space, or will this be a
specific garden area?
s 7HAT ARE THE NEEDS OF THOSE WHO
will most likely utilize this space?

Start with an Inventory Make an inventory by taking the time to measure the site and develop an accurate base-plan. This way students can use their rulers to determine relative size. A good scale to use IS INCH FEET 7HAT IS ON THE SITE now? Make a list. Even if the ground appears barren, what is the ground surface?

Develop a Conceptual Design Conceptual design or brainstorming is my favorite step. This is when everyone can feel free to express their ideas for the project. I recommend beginning with the gathering spaces and pathways, answering question of how the users of the space will negotiate the space. Once the paths and gathering spaces are determined, all other areas can be considered as planting beds. Don’t forget benches and other garden accessories. Draw the areas to scale on a base plan. You may wish to have students cover the base plan with tracing paper and work on that, so that they can change their minds, begin again, or develop multiple solutions. I urge students to develop multiple solutions for the design of a site, since the final solution is very often a composite of designs and input from a number of people.