Professional Learning at the Arboretum
The Dallas Arboretum provides year-round CPE credit opportunities for educators who want to get their students outside of the classroom by building academic connections to the world around them through garden-based learning experiences.
The Arboretum isn’t just the perfect field trip for students and the best floral display in Dallas, but it is also the ideal location to get TEA-approved Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credit if you’re a teacher! All of our workshops allow educators the opportunity to enjoy learning in Dallas’ most beautiful outdoor classroom in highly-aligned and hands-on workshops. Many workshops are also available at your campus (for groups of fifteen or more). Custom workshops available upon request.
Contact education@dallasarboretum.org with any questions.
Available Programs
DIY Hydroponics
Teachers of Grades K – 6
Saturday, January 25, 2020 from 9am-12pm
$45 ($40 for members)
Registration includes coffee, light breakfast snacks and materials and support to make your own hydroponic systems. Parking also included. 3 hours CPE
Short on green space? Having trouble maintain a vegetable garden outdoors? Try hydroponics! Growing plants in a hydroponic system takes up less space and uses less water than traditional vegetables gardens, yet it often creates higher yields. Attend this workshop to learn how to make your own hydroponic system with simple, inexpensive materials. During the workshop, each participant will make their own hydroponic system to take back to school.
Learn, Grow, Eat, & Go!
Teachers of Grades 1 – 5
Tuesday, February 4, 2020 from 4-7pm
$30 ($25 for Members)
Registration includes light bites, wine and the Learn, Grow, Eat, & Go! Curriculum guide. Parking also included. 3 hours CPE
Learn, Grow, Eat, & GO! (LGEG) is a research-based curriculum project of the International Junior Master Gardener® Program. The program guides students to identify where their food comes from, understand the nutrients found in food, gain skills needed to grow their own food and maintain health through physically activity. The lessons in this guide connect classroom activities to the food growing in your school garden and/or being served in your school’s lunch room. This multidisciplinary curriculum is a great way to connect science, math, health and physical education learning!
Get Your Garden Growing
Teachers of Grades K – 6
Saturday, February 29, 2020 from 9:30am-3:30pm
$45 ($40 for Members)
This workshop will take place at the Noble Research Institute in Ardmore, Oklahoma.
Registration includes lunch, hands-on materials and curriculum documents. An optional overnight stay is included in the cost of the workshops at the Noble Research Institute, giving you the flexibility to drive up to Oklahoma on Friday afternoon or evening for the Saturday workshop. Overnight stay includes Saturday breakfast. Or, skip the overnight stay and drive up on Saturday morning. 6 hours CPE
Get Your Garden Growing is a practical workshop focused on how to establish a healthy, productive garden plot. Topics include: garden planning, establishing soil health, prepping the plot, and preparing for the first planting. All activities will include clear TEKS connections to earth and life science for use with your students.
Prairie Ecosystems of North Texas: Plant Your Own Native Garden!
Teachers of grades K – 6
Saturday, March 28, 2020 from 9am-3pm
$45 ($40 for Members)
This workshop will take place at The Lamplighter School, located at 16111 Inwood Road, Dallas, TX 75229.
Registration includes coffee, light breakfast snacks and materials and support to develop and/or enhance a native prairie garden. 6 hours CPE
Join us at The Lamplighter School Prairie to learn about the benefits of creating a sustainable garden space at your school! During this interactive workshop we will model student activities that use the prairie to teach concepts related to interdependence in ecosystems, food webs and diversity within a habitat. You will explore how to engage students in the practices of making observations and recording data using prairie plants. After participating in this workshop, you will leave with TEKS-aligned lessons that help students connect to the outdoors and resources to establish your own prairie.
Aquatic WILD Educator Workshop
Teachers of grades K – 8
Saturday, April 25, 2020 from 9am-3pm
$45 ($40 for Members)
Registration includes the Aquatic WILD K – 12 Curriculum & Activity Guide. Parking also included. 6 hours CPE
Join us for a day of learning in our Texas Native Wetlands outdoor classroom! In this workshop we dive into one basic component of habitats for people and wildlife: water. Our Project WILD facilitator will introduce you to the Aquatic WILD K – 12 Curriculum and Activity Guide, a 400+ page book filled with activities that allow students to explore and understand the fascinating world of water and the aquatic habitats it supports. The 48 TEKS-aligned activities included in the book explore the following themes: habitats, ecosystems, interference, adaptations and biodiversity.
Education at the Arboretum
Education is key cornerstone of the mission of the Arboretum. See what programs we offer.