Educators
North Spore — Classroom Program
Biology your
students can
actually hold.
Hands-on mushroom growing kits designed for educators who believe that a student who grows something understands it in a way no textbook can replicate.
14 days
first flush appears
$29.99
per classroom kit
16-pack
bulk options available
⭐ Top pick for classrooms
Why mushrooms in the classroom?
Learning that grows on you
Mushrooms are uniquely suited for classroom science. They're fast, forgiving, and endlessly fascinating — a living specimen that connects to nearly every corner of a life science curriculum.
01
Fast enough to hold student attention
Most species begin fruiting within 7–14 days. Students observe mycelium colonization, pinning, and full fruiting bodies — an entire life cycle — within a single unit. No waiting for seeds to sprout and die.
02
Low maintenance, high engagement
The Spray & Grow kit needs only light misting once or twice a day. No special soil, no grow lamps, no complex setup. Even a busy classroom can keep it thriving — and students are eager to check on it.
03
Connects across subjects
Biology, math (measuring growth rates), writing (observation journals), health (nutrition), and environmental science (decomposers, carbon cycling). One kit supports weeks of cross-disciplinary lessons.
Classroom Favorite
The Spray & Grow Kit — your classroom's most reliable experiment
A fully colonized substrate block that students mist twice daily and watch transform. The Lion's Mane variety is especially dramatic — its shaggy white fruiting bodies are visually unlike anything students expect a mushroom to look like, sparking exactly the kind of curiosity that drives science learning.
- Results in as little as 7 days — fits inside a single unit
- No special equipment, lighting, or soil required
- Produces 2–3 flushes — multiple observation windows
- 100% organic, certified substrate
- Ships in an insulated box, arrives ready to grow
$29.99
per kit · free shipping on orders over $50
Simple by design
From order to first flush in three steps
01
Order & receive
Choose your species, place your order, and your fully colonized substrate block ships in an insulated box. Arrives ready to grow — no prep, no inoculation required.
02
Set up & mist
Cut the opening, set the kit on a countertop or windowsill, and assign a student to mist it twice a day. That's the full maintenance routine. Students can document changes from day one.
03
Harvest & discuss
Within 7–14 days, mushrooms are ready to harvest. Cook them together, compare observations, connect findings to your curriculum — and let the kit rest for a second flush.
Choose your species
View all kits
Three great picks for classrooms
Best for beginners
Pleurotus ostreatus
Blue Oyster Spray & Grow Kit
The most reliable producer in the classroom. Blue oysters flush quickly, in clusters — perfect for observing mycelium structure and fungal life cycles. High tolerance for classroom conditions.
Most visually striking
Hericium erinaceus
Lion's Mane Spray & Grow Kit
Shaggy white cascading fruiting bodies that look nothing like a "normal" mushroom. A guaranteed conversation-starter — and a gateway to discussions on medicinal fungi, neural health, and taxonomy.
Crowd favorite
Pleurotus djamor
Pink Oyster Spray & Grow Kit
Vivid coral-pink clusters that students won't believe are real. Fastest fruiting of any oyster variety — sometimes within 5 days. A striking introduction to pigmentation and fruiting body morphology.
Equip the whole class
16-kit classroom packs — one per student group
Our wholesale Spray & Grow packs are designed for classrooms that want every table growing simultaneously. Available in single-species packs or a mixed variety of all four — perfect for comparative observations across student groups.
16 kits per pack
Blue Oyster, Pink Oyster, Lion's Mane & more
Mixed variety available
~$16.75 per kit
Shop 16-pack
From $267.99 per pack
Cross-disciplinary learning
One kit. Six subjects.
A Spray & Grow kit is a living curriculum tool. Here's how educators are already threading it through their lesson plans.
Biology
Life Sciences & Fungi Kingdom
- Kingdom Fungi vs. Kingdom Plantae
- Mycelium structure and function
- Spore reproduction and dispersal
- Fruiting body morphology
- Heterotrophic nutrition
Environmental Science
Decomposers & the Carbon Cycle
- Role of decomposers in ecosystems
- Carbon and nitrogen cycling
- Substrate breakdown and compost
- Biodiversity and interdependence
- Sustainable food systems
Math
Measurement & Data
- Daily growth rate calculations
- Graphing mass over time
- Surface area estimation
- Percentage yield comparisons
- Mean, median, and range (group data)
ELA & Writing
Observation & Scientific Writing
- Daily observation journal entries
- Scientific vocabulary building
- Descriptive and technical writing
- Persuasive writing (food systems)
- Research reports on species
STEM / Engineering
Variables, Controls & the Scientific Method
- Designing a controlled experiment
- Temperature and humidity variables
- Hypothesis testing across groups
- Data collection protocols
- Drawing evidence-based conclusions
Health & Nutrition
Food, Fungi & the Human Body
- Nutritional content of mushrooms
- Medicinal properties (Lion's Mane)
- Farm-to-table food literacy
- Culinary arts integration
- Local and sustainable food choices
What educators are saying
"My students checked on the kit before they even put their backpacks down. Within two weeks they had grown, harvested, and cooked something. That's science education at its best."
Sarah K.
7th Grade Life Science · Portland, OR
"I ordered the 16-pack for my AP Environmental Science class. Every group grew a different species, and the comparison data was genuinely impressive. North Spore's kits are the real deal."
Marcus T.
AP Environmental Science · Austin, TX
"The Lion's Mane kit sparked a three-week deep-dive into fungi that I never planned. Kids researched medicinal mushrooms, wrote persuasive essays, and one student has started growing at home."
Priya N.
5th Grade STEM · Chicago, IL
Common questions
Things educators ask us
How long does a kit last in the classroom? +
A single kit will typically produce 2–3 flushes over the course of 4–6 weeks. The first flush is usually the largest and most dramatic. After harvesting, you let the block rest for 5–7 days, then resume misting for a second flush — great for multi-week observation and comparison.
Does it need special lighting or equipment? +
No grow lights, no grow tents, no special equipment. The kits thrive under normal indoor ambient light — a countertop or windowsill works perfectly. You'll need a small spray bottle (included) and access to water. That's it.
Can I order in bulk for a whole classroom or school? +
Yes — our Wholesale 16-pack is designed exactly for this. Packs are available in Blue Oyster, Pink Oyster, Lion's Mane, or a mixed variety of all four species. At ~$16.75 per kit, it's the most cost-effective way to equip an entire classroom or multiple classrooms. Contact us at educators@northspore.com for school purchase orders.
Is it safe to have mushrooms growing in a classroom? +
Absolutely. All of our kits use 100% organic, food-grade substrate and produce edible mushroom species. The spore load in a typical classroom environment is negligible. We do recommend harvesting before the mushrooms become fully mature (when the caps begin to flatten) if anyone in the room has severe respiratory sensitivities. The harvested mushrooms can be cooked and eaten — a great opportunity for a culinary component to your lesson.
Do you provide lesson plans or curriculum materials? +
We offer a downloadable observation journal and growth-tracking worksheet for classroom use. We're also actively building out a curriculum guide in partnership with science educators — if you'd like to be involved in that process or share how you're using North Spore in your classroom, reach out to us at educators@northspore.com.
Ready to grow?
Give your students
Give your students
something alive.
From a single Spray & Grow kit to a full 16-pack classroom setup — North Spore has what you need to bring real, living science into your room.