Little Green Thumbs is proud to announce Hayley Muench as a recipient of the Inaugural Little Green Thumbs National Teacher Award, recognizing her outstanding commitment to garden-based learning, food literacy, and student engagement.
We would also like to thank our core sponsor Nutrien. Without their support, this award would never happen!
As a Kindergarten teacher participating in both the Little Green Thumbs and Little Green Sprouts programs, Hayley has created a learning environment where even the youngest students become gardeners, scientists, researchers, and environmental stewards. Through her creativity and dedication, she has adapted the Little Green Thumbs program for five- and six-year-old learners, proving that meaningful garden-based education can begin at any age.
In Hayley’s classroom, students are involved in every step of the growing process. They explore seeds, document their observations in garden journals, learn about plant life cycles, conduct research using books and technology, and take responsibility for caring for their classroom garden.
Students also take on special roles as the garden grows, including plant doctors, plant trackers, and one of Hayley’s favourite roles—plant appreciators. These young gardeners encourage their plants with positive affirmations such as “Grow stronger every day,” “Reach for the sun,” and “Be-leaf in yourself,” helping to nurture both healthy plants and healthy self-esteem.
“The opportunity to run the Little Green Thumbs and Little Green Sprouts program in a Kindergarten setting has been an amazing and rewarding experience that really highlights how competent and capable our earliest learners are,” says Hayley. “Learning how to wonder about, grow and care for our garden as a classroom community has not only connected kindergarten students to the curriculum in a hands-on and engaging way, but it’s also created a bridge between our in-school learning and their lives outside our classroom.”
One of the hallmarks of Hayley’s approach is the strong connection she creates between the classroom and the wider community. Families are invited to share their gardening knowledge and experiences, helping students see how growing food and caring for plants connects generations and cultures.
Over the years, parents have visited the classroom to read stories about gardening, help students plant seeds, share horticultural expertise, and introduce students to flowers, vegetables, and growing techniques from their own gardens.
The impact of these experiences extends far beyond Kindergarten.
At the end of each school year, students celebrate their hard work with a special “Salad-bration.” After harvesting the produce they have grown themselves, students prepare and enjoy fresh food together before sharing their harvest with other classrooms throughout the school. The experience helps students understand where food comes from while celebrating the responsibility and teamwork required to grow it.
Many students carry those memories with them long after they leave Hayley’s classroom.
Parents Cindy Ducherer and Mark Hagon reflected on the lasting impact of the program on their children.
“Her gardening projects included planting seeds, drawing the stages of plant growth, sending home seeds to watch grow, and sending plants home to plant in our gardens,” they shared. “Our boys loved seeing how large the sunflowers were by the fall and always remembered their year with Mrs. Muench.”
The classroom garden has become such a memorable part of the Kindergarten experience that one graduating class even adopted a “Kinder-Garden” theme for its year-end celebration, with families receiving wildflower seed packets as keepsakes to continue growing at home.
Hayley’s innovative approach exemplifies the spirit of Little Green Thumbs by making food literacy, environmental learning, and hands-on education accessible and meaningful for young learners. Through gardening, she is helping students develop responsibility, cooperation, curiosity, and confidence while fostering a lifelong connection to nature.
The Little Green Thumbs National Teacher Award celebrates educators who inspire students through experiential learning and cultivate a deeper understanding of food, sustainability, and the environment. Hayley Muench’s dedication to her students, her school community, and garden-based education makes her a truly deserving recipient.
Congratulations, Hayley, on becoming one of the inaugural recipients of the Little Green Thumbs National Teacher Award. Your passion and innovation are helping grow the next generation of learners, leaders, and gardeners.
