Farm Lab
Growing Education through Garden-Based Learning.
The Farm Lab is a ‘micro’ model agroecological farm and school garden support program for hands-on, experiential, place-based education. With a focus on science and other curriculum subjects, we help to grow a more healthy, sustainable, and just food system for our community.
Free Webinar Series – Part 1 – “Growing School Food & Food Literacy in School Gardens” – June 11th, 7pm & In Person Open House July 13th, 10am (Details Below).
Announcing: “Growing School Food and Food Literacy”
Part 1 of the Simcoe County School Food Webinar Series!
All are welcome, bring your friends and share with your friends, colleagues, and networks!
Presented by:
Lakehead Farm Lab & the Simcoe County Food Council – School Food Working Table (School Food Table, for short).
Date:
Wednesday, June 11th, 7:00 – 8:15 pm (EST)
Location:
Zoom Online (Register for free here).
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Part 1. Empowering Youth Through Hands-On Food Education in Local Contexts
Join us for the first in a dynamic webinar series exploring the future of school food in our communities happening virtually on Wednesday, June 11th from 7-8:15 pm. Together, we’ll seed meaningful conversations around school food programs, food literacy, and innovative ways to embed food education into everyday learning. Inspired by spring, the first webinar features school garden educators Linda Grant, Lindsay Sargent, Mellissa Spencer, and Jacob Kearey-Moreland from the Lakehead Farm Lab who will share creative, hands-on ways to integrate gardening and food-focused learning into core subjects like math, science, and French. This webinar is for teachers, students, parents, administrators, and anyone passionate about garden-based learning and growing a healthy school food environment.
About the “Simcoe County School Food Series”
This ongoing series organized by our local School Food Table connects educators, policy-makers, researchers, parents, youth & school food champions to share insights, explore best practices, and collaborate on building healthier, more just, and sustainable school food environments. School food can mean anything from student nutrition programs offering breakfast, lunch, and snacks, to school gardens, farms and kitchens, food literacy, Indigenous foodways, and much more. Together, we’ll seed meaningful conversations to inspire innovative actions that nourish student minds and bodies. The School Food Table meets monthly to connect school food advocates and practitioners in conversation and collective action.
Part 2 – Save the Date! Coming fall 2025 we will learn about the needs and opportunities for growing Student Nutrition Programs within our local school boards.
Bonus! In-Person Farm Lab Tour
Join us for an in-person Open House at the Farm Lab on Sunday July 13th from 10am-2pm at Lakehead Orillia, 500 University Avenue (northeast campus, next to main parking lot).
Have a tour of the garden, take home some free seeds, taste some organic vegetables, and enjoy some Farm Lab infused refreshments!
We would love to meet you and answer your gardening questions. Hope to see you there!
Please contact Jacob at kearey-morelandj@lakeheadu.ca or visit farmlab.lakeheadu.ca for questions or more information!
Happy seeding!
Farm Lab: Spring Drop In Hours!
During the months of April & May, 2025, all are welcome to drop in to the Farm Lab during every Tuesday from 10-1pm, and Thursday from 4-7pm.
Email Jacob for more information kearey-morelandj@lakeheadu.ca. For regular updates on drop in and other opportunities join the WhatsApp group by clicking here (mobile only).
During drop ins we will be tending to the Farm Lab, seeding, harvesting and everything in between.
Farm Lab 2025 Program Intake & Winter-Spring Activities
Hap-pea new year! This thyme of year we are busy sorting our seeds, conducting experimental germination tests, preparing our seed libraries, crop plans, garden designs and circulating seeds for the spring sowing! For our first full season, we are excited to grow with fellow school gardeners throughout the Simcoe County region. For us school gardening doesn’t start in the spring and end in summer when schools close and the weeds take over – it is a yearlong, natural cycle from seed to seed and all the planning, sowing, tending, harvesting and reflection in between. Our team is here to support a vibrant community and school garden ecosystem. We are excited to support food literacy and garden-based learning programming from K-12 across all school boards. If you are a teacher, educator or otherwise interested in partnering for programming please contact us directly or through our intake form and we can grow from there! We welcome hands-on, experiential, cross-curricular fieldtrips to the Lakehead Farm Lab and we are happy to join you virtually, at your school grounds and in the community. Lettuce grow well-beans to-gather!
Farm Lab Events & Webinar Calendar
Education that nourishes student minds and bodies.
We are cultivating an ever-expanding team of experienced garden-based educators able to lead and support science curriculum integrated programming in partnership with local schools (K-12) within the Simcoe County area. Our educators offer hands on programming in schools, professional development for teachers, and host field trips to the Farm Lab at Lakehead University in Orillia. Farm Lab works to connect and grow our community food system through education.
Field Trips
Fill out our field trip application form to schedule an opportunity to visit the Farm Lab.
Bring Farm Lab to your school
Fill out our intake application form to schedule an opportunity to arrange programming with one of our garden-based educators.
For Lakehead Teacher Candidates!
B.Ed. student volunteering and alternative placement opportunities.
Community Partnerships
Farm Lab is open to community partnerships to advance our shared goals, including events, workshops and community garden support.
Lakehead Seed Library
We tend to our Lakehead Seed Library which also provides free seeds and seed literacy programming to school gardens in our region.
Resources & Support for School Growers
In addition to seeds we provide other physical and intellectual resources (like pots, trays, and connections for compost, building materials, etc…) and lesson plans, activities, etc… that your school needs to grow.
Join us at the Farm Lab
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