Iowa Kids Garden Day

Sara Lockie on June 2, 2025

Across the state nearly 35,000 kids celebrated the first annual Iowa Kids Garden Day, hosted by 100+ locations! At Next Step Adventure, we have been organizing and coordinating this work for almost two years, and it was gratifying to see …

Iowa Kids Garden Day

Sara Lockie on March 10, 2025

We’ve been working on this for months, and we finally get to share it with everyone – Iowa Kids Garden Day registration is open here! Wednesday, May 21st, 2025 (or anytime in May!) Save the date for Wednesday, May 21, 2025, and …

NEW Garden Scavenger Hunt

Sara Lockie on April 4, 2025

Spring is in the air, and with it comes the irresistible urge to get outside and explore! What better way to combine fresh air, learning, and fun than with a garden scavenger hunt? Just download and print the Garden Scavenger …

We’re Gardeners!

Martha McCormick on August 29, 2022

That's what my four-year-old granddaughter says as we plant fall crops. I always tell folks who work with kids in gardens, it's not about the plants. It's about the kids.

Connecting Kids and Healthy Food

Sara Lockie on April 8, 2022

How much do you love healthy, local food? How hard do you have to work to find it and get it to your table? How important is it to you to have your kids eat healthy food that's grown close to where you live?

Get Kids Moving

Sara Lockie on July 1, 2020

The outdoors is the best place to be as we fight Covid-19 and experience the beauty of fall. Don't miss the opportunity on warm days for water play, bike rides, creek walking and neighborhood mapping. Go ahead and get lost!

Plant a Garden

Martha McCormick on June 6, 2011

I’m gardening with the Earth Heroes from Carver Community School‘s Boys and Girls Club this season. When I first saw how little these mostly second graders are, I thought there’s no way they can farm the 20 raised beds at …

Growing Together

Sara Lockie on January 29, 2025

At our core, we believe in the power of growing together—whether that’s through planting seeds, cultivating relationships, or creating lasting change within our communities. That’s why we are so excited about our work with the Iowa Farm to School & …

Teachers Going Green curriculum is here!

Martha McCormick on November 14, 2024

Last month Ashley M and I enjoyed a lunch meeting at the Trellis Cafe at the Des Moines Botanical Garden with Stephanie Harrington, Natural Resources Program Coordinator with ISU Extension, Polk County. Stephanie trains ISU Master Gardeners to work with …