HOMESCHOOL GARDEN CLASSES . SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA . AGES K-6TH
Where kids learn to grow, tend & belong in the natural world.
Flexible, seasonal garden learning for homeschool families, one-on-one or small groups, shaped entirely around your child and your family's needs.
One-on-one or small groups up to 10 · Seasonal terms · Orange County
See what a class looks like ↓
"He came home and immediately asked to start a garden. I've never seen him so excited."
— WILD JOY GARDENS PARENT
Kids who grow tomatoes eat tomatoes.
Kids who grow up in gardens grow up connected to the earth.
There's something that happens when a child puts a seed in the ground and watches it grow. They become invested. Curious. Patient. Proud. They notice things, the monarch caterpillar on the milkweed, the first California poppy of the season, the smell of the soil after rain.
Wild Joy Garden Classes are built around your child not the other way around. Whether it's one-on-one sessions, a small group of friends, or a co-op class, every experience is shaped to fit your family's rhythm, your child's curiosity, and what you're already learning at home.
No screens, no worksheets. Just kids, soil, and the living world around them. We can build a garden from scratch in the ground or in containers, tend and revamp an existing one, or come learn in my own garden in Costa Mesa. Whatever your family has, we'll work with it.
EVERY CLASS INCLUDES
Learning that gets their hands dirty in the best way.
Each session is 60 to 90 minutes and might weave together a few of these elements, or dive deeper into just one. Some days we're all in the soil planting. Other days we're journaling and pressing flowers. It follows the season, the garden, and what your child is drawn to. Every child keeps an ongoing nature journal that grows with them through the season.
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Hands-On Planting & Gardening
Real seeds, real soil, real tools. Kids plant, tend, and harvest. Learning what plants need and why it matters.
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Nature Journaling
Drawing, observing, and recording what they see in the garden. A practice that builds curiosity and a lifelong love of the natural world.
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Seasonal Craft
Crafts rooted in what's growing; pressed flowers, leaf prints, natural dyes, seed packets, and more. Creativity inspired by the season.
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Harvest & Simple Cooking
When there's something ready to pick, we eat it. Simple, seasonal tasting and cooking that connects kids to where food actually comes from.
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Nature Awareness & Wonder
Learning to notice pollinators, birds, soil life, seasonal changes. The kind of attention that makes the whole world feel more alive.
WHAT WE EXPLORE
Built around your family. Not the other way around.
One-on-One or Small Groups
Private sessions for a single child, or small groups of up to 10 kids. Fully flexible based on what works best for your family or co-op.
Every family is different and Wild Joy Garden Classes are designed to flex with that. Some families want one-on-one sessions where Kristy works directly with their child at their own pace. Others want a small group of neighborhood kids or co-op friends learning together. Both are wonderful. Both are possible.
Want to tie garden time into your existing curriculum? We can do that too. Veggie gardening connects naturally to math (measuring, counting, fractions), language arts and writing (nature journaling, observation), cooking and nutrition, and science across every grade. Just tell me what you're working on and we'll weave it in.
Classes follow the California seasons, what we plant, harvest, and notice shifts with the year. No two terms are the same, and no two families' experiences are the same either.
Curriculum Integration
Garden learning ties naturally into math, language arts, writing, cooking, and science. Tell me what your child is studying and we'll connect it to the garden.
Ages K–6th Grade
Activities are thoughtfully scaled for different ages, whether your child is just starting to read or already writing full essays about the natural world.
Serving Orange County
Classes take place wherever makes sense at your home (garden or no garden!), or come learn in my own garden in Costa Mesa. We'll figure out what works best for you.
Seasonal & Flexible Scheduling
Sessions run on a seasonal rhythm that follows California's growing calendar with scheduling that fits your homeschool life, not the other way around.
WHAT WE EXPLORE
The living curriculum rooted in California.
Topics shift with the seasons, but these are the threads that run through every term connecting kids to the land, the plants, and the ecosystem right outside their door.
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Veggie Gardening
From seed to harvest, planting, tending, and eating vegetables grown with their own hands. Kids who grow food understand food in a completely different way.
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California Native Plants
Getting to know the plants that belong here. California poppies, manzanitas, native sages and why they matter to our local ecosystem and wildlife.
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Seasonal Living & Nature Awareness
Learning to read the seasons, what's blooming, what's dormant, what's changing. A practice of noticing that builds a deep, lifelong relationship with the natural world.
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Composting & Soil
The secret world beneath our feet what makes healthy soil, how composting works, and why the tiniest creatures in the garden are some of the most important.
Pollinators & Insects
Bees, butterflies, beetles and beyond who they are, what they do, and how we grow gardens that welcome and support them. We'll plant milkweed, watch for monarch caterpillars, and learn why these relationships between plants and pollinators are at the heart of every healthy garden.
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YOUR GUIDE
Hi, I'm Kristy and I believe every child deserves to know where things grow.
I've had little ones in the garden with me since my own children were babies literally in a basket beside me while I planted and weeded and tended. They grew up with soil under their fingernails and an instinct for noticing things. One of them will still rush inside to tell me what's new in the garden, a flower that opened overnight, the lemons finally ready to pick.
That's what I want for every child I work with. That sense of aliveness. That impulse to notice.
I'm a UC Master Gardener, certified California native plant landscaper, and volunteer with the California Native Plant Society. I've been gardening in Southern California for over 15 years and teaching kids in gardens for nearly as long. I volunteer at a school garden where I give lessons to children from two years old through 6th grade, and I've watched kids of every age light up the moment they get their hands in the soil.
Their favorite part? The harvest, always. But along the way we compost, plant seeds, water, weed, and take time to notice the garden changing around us. We end with a garden snack. And somehow, every single time, even the kids who were resistant at
the start don't want to leave.
My approach is unhurried and hands-on. I follow the child's curiosity, follow the season, and let the garden be the teacher. I'm just there to guide, get excited alongside them, and make sure every session feels like the best part of their week.
LET'S TALK
Every family is different. Let's find what fits yours.
Because every family's needs are unique, I don't offer a one-size-fits-all program. Pricing is based on format, one-on-one or small group and the number of sessions per term. Sliding scale available. The best first step is a quick conversation.
Garden Learning Sessions
ONE-ON-ONE OR SMALL GROUPS . AGES K–6th · ORANGE COUNTY
Let's chat
Pricing based on format & frequency · sliding scale available
One-on-one sessions or small groups up to 10 kids
Hands-on planting, harvesting & seasonal crafts
An ongoing nature journal that grows through the season
Curriculum integration tailored to your child's grade; math, writing, science, cooking and more
All materials, seeds, and supplies included
A take-home seasonal plant or seed packet each term
Already have a co-op group formed? Working on a specific unit study or grade-level topic? Reach out — I love working from where your family and your curriculum already are.
QUESTIONS
A few things families often ask.
What age range are the classes designed for?
Classes are designed for children kindergarten through 6th grade. Activities are adapted so both younger and older children within the group are meaningfully engaged.
Do parents stay during class?
That's up to you and we can discuss what works best for your family. Some parents stay and participate, which is always welcome and others drop off. We'll figure out what feels right for your child.
What should kids wear?
Clothes they can get dirty in, we will absolutely be in the soil. Closed-toe shoes, sun protection, and a water bottle are always a good idea.
Do you accommodate food allergies during harvest activities?
Yes, please let me know about any allergies or dietary restrictions when you reach out. We'll make sure every child can participate fully and safely.
Where do classes take place?
Classes come to you in Orange County at your home, your backyard, or wherever you have space to learn. No garden yet? No problem. You're also welcome to come learn in my own garden in Costa Mesa. We'll figure out what works best for your family.
My child has never gardened before. Is that okay?
Absolutely, beginners are especially welcome. There's no experience needed, no right or wrong way to be in the garden. We start where every child is and go from there.