Garden to Table

14/08/2026

🌿 Professional development opportunity

Garden to Table teachers have been offered priority access to a $1,000 discount on Natural Leaders’ four-day FIELD training at Mangaroa Farms.

FIELD is an immersive professional development experience bringing together nature journalling, Philosophy for Children, and nonviolent communication (NVC) with plenty of practical learning to take back into your teaching.

With the discount, places are:
🌱 $300 for day students
🌱 $800 including accommodation and full catering

Discounted places are limited and available on a first come, first served basis, in selected regions across Aotearoa.

If you are interested or would like more details, please contact Mandi from Natural Leaders at [email protected]

Find out more about FIELD here:

A daily nature journalling session, from thirty minutes. Science, literacy and numeracy on the page, and a structure when tempers rise. A four-day school facilitator training is available. See dates and register Click Here   What this is   Imagine if the first hour of every day resulted in settled...

11/08/2026

Over the coming months, we are welcoming MPs from across Parliament to visit a Garden to Table school and today, it was a pleasure to welcome Dr Lawrence Xu-Nan , Green Party spokesperson for Education along with fellow Green Party MP Ricardo Menéndez March MP.

From getting hands-on in the garden to joining students in the kitchen, the visit offered an opportunity to see how our programme brings learning to life. Every week, tamariki are developing practical food skills while building confidence, teamwork, problem-solving abilities and a deeper connection to nature, all through hands-on, curriculum-linked learning.

"This is what I love to see, students doing all this themselves with such agency. It's empowering them." - Dr Lawrence Xu-Nan

We believe every child should have the opportunity to grow, cook and share fresh kai, and we're grateful for the chance to showcase the impact this has on students, teachers and school communities.

These visits are part of our commitment to engaging with decision-makers from across the political spectrum. We're looking forward to welcoming more MPs from across Parliament to Garden to Table schools over the coming months and continuing the conversation about the value of hands-on food education for tamariki across Aotearoa New Zealand.
Thank you to Edendale School for so warmly hosting today's visit.

10/08/2026

✨ Plastic Free July actions for Queenstown Primary School make a huge impact on the wider school! 💚

Queenstown School Year 3 /4 classes have learnt how to reduce their single use plastic in their lunches. They also sorted waste into recycling and compost and then visited the school compost bins and worm farm. Learning how our decomposers eat up our food and plant waste. 🪱

The Year 6 classes have been digging out the compost to add to the vegetable gardens. They have been preparing the gardens ready for spring planting with their favourite fruit and vegetables that they will harvest and cook themselves with Garden to Table. 🥕

Taking care of the land is a key concept for our Theme Area, Living Landscapes, where we learn Whenua is the land that nourishes life. When we grow our own kai, we are learning to be healthy, self-sufficient and resourceful. We can also trade or gift the surplus within our community, fostering relationships through this flow of aroha. Working with others in a food network, we can draw on each other’s strengths to meet more of our community’s kai needs locally. This will maximise freshness, minimise packaging and reduce ‘food miles’ that result in pollution from transport emissions. Through our manaaki – taking care of others, and treating guests well – we can share the fruits of our work and raise the mana of our Enviroschool. 🍀

Otago Regional Council Enviroschools Aotearoa NZ Queenstown Lakes District Council

07/08/2026

At Garden to Table, we believe every child deserves the opportunity to grow, cook and share fresh kai.

To help build understanding of the impact of hands-on food education, we've invited MPs from across the political spectrum to visit Garden to Table schools and experience our programme in action.

We're delighted to confirm upcoming visits from MPs who hold the Education porfolio for their party who will spend time with our students, teachers and school communities to see firsthand how Garden to Table is helping tamariki participate in hands-on, curriculum-linked learning, build confidence, develop lifelong food skills, connect with nature and strengthen their communities.

We believe that investing in the wellbeing and education of tamariki is something that transcends politics, and we're grateful for the opportunity to share our kaupapa with leaders from across Parliament.

We look forward to sharing highlights from each visit over the coming months.

03/08/2026

At Garden to Table, growing, cooking and sharing kai creates opportunities for tamariki to celebrate the cultures, traditions and stories that make our communities so unique.

From family recipes passed down through generations to vegetables and herbs that reflect the diverse backgrounds of our school communities, food becomes a powerful way to build understanding, belonging and connection.

Our latest story explores how Garden to Table is helping tamariki celebrate culture through hands-on learning in the garden and kitchen, while creating spaces where everyone feels seen, valued and included.

✨ Read the full story and discover how growing and sharing kai is bringing communities together across Aotearoa. https://gardentotable.org.nz/stories/celebrating-culture-through-garden-to-table

02/08/2026

So exciting to see the new compost system being built at Cannons Creek School!

31/07/2026

Some of our youngest learning enjoying a delicious hauhake (harvest) from their māra kai (garden)

🌱🥦 From Garden to Table! 🥦🌱

Today our tamariki enjoyed a wonderful hands-on learning experience as they harvested fresh broccoli from our garden! Together, they carefully picked the vegetable, washed it clean, and explored where healthy food comes from.

We love creating meaningful learning opportunities that connect our tamariki with the world around them. 💚

He kai kei aku ringa - There is food at the end of my hands.

🌿

31/07/2026

How gorgeous is this?! A local kindergarten visiting a neighbouring Garden to Table school to learn and be inspired by what the older tamariki are up to with their programme.
Strong communities of food growers being built 🥰

28/07/2026

🍎 NEW: Tricks of the Trade — helping students decode the food environment

What's really influencing what ends up in our shopping trolleys? 🛒

We're excited to share a sneak peek of Tricks of the Trade, our new nutrition resource series for Years 5–8! These units arm ākonga (students) with the facts about food marketing, packaging, and ultra-processed food so they can make truly informed choices about their kai.

The full series covers:
📦 Food Packaging
🏭 Processed Food and Food Marketing
🌏 Healthy People, Healthy Planet
📱 Social Media and Television Advertising

It's not just about learning the facts, it's about taking action. From personal choices to classroom conversations, school-wide change and even advocating nationally, students are empowered to be changemakers in their food environment.

👉 Try our free sample activity exploring food packaging - https://gardentotable.org.nz/taster-resources-for-the-classroom/tricks-of-the-trade

24/07/2026

🎉 BIG congrats to our Garden to Table Bake Sale Photo Competition winners! 🎉

A huge shoutout to Ōrākei School, Three Kings School, and Mareki Montessori - these amazing schools are walking away with brand new cookbooks and a very cool set of Garden to Table aprons for their sessions!

But the real win? These school, along with so many others across the motu, rolled up their sleeves, fired up the ovens, and rallied their communities for epic bake sales that raised vital funds for their Garden to Table programmes.