Starting a garden with your children can be a fun and healthy way to spend time together. Here are the benefits of doing so:
When you plant a garden, kids learn new skills such as watering plants and picking flowers. This helps them develop a sense of responsibility and respect for the environment.
1. It’s Fun
Starting a garden with your children is not only fun but it also helps them develop essential skills. For example, children love to get dirty and gardening is a great way for them to do this.
Kids are also naturally curious and tend to ask questions all the time, so a garden is a perfect place to encourage their curiosity and teach them important things at the same time! They may want to know about a plant’s needs or how worms help the soil.
Start small and introduce the kids to basic gardening activities, like planting seeds or weeding. Once they gain confidence, you can graduate to larger projects.
2. It’s Healthy
Gardening is a great way to get your children outside and engage in healthy physical activity. It also helps them build a pattern of regular exercise that will carry them into adolescence and adulthood!
In addition to getting kids out of the house for fresh air and exercise, gardening can boost their immune system. It introduces them to beneficial bacteria in the soil, which can help reduce their chances of contracting illnesses.
Research has shown that gardening with kids is a stress-relieving activity that can be a great way to teach them mindfulness and relaxation techniques. The Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario calls its Healing Earth Garden a place to “retreat and renew energy.”
It can also give your children a new appreciation for where their food comes from and the work that it takes to produce it. Having your kids help you tend the garden, then harvesting and cooking it together will create an attachment that they will be proud of.
3. It’s Educational
Gardening with kids is a great way to help them learn. You can use the time to teach them new vocabulary, ecological concepts and math skills (counting and probability).
They also get to experience the wonder of nature firsthand. They can touch the soil, feel the sun on their face and listen to the birds singing.
All of these sensory experiences stimulate children and awaken their curiosity about the world around them.
It also helps to enhance fine motor skills and teaches responsibility by encouraging them to take care of their own seeds and plants.
In addition, they will learn about green thinking and environmental preservation, says Tony from Escape Waste.
It is a great opportunity to talk about the life cycle of plants, plant chemistry and why it’s important to compost. This may spark your child’s interest in a career in botany or horticulture.
4. It’s Exciting
Gardening is a great way to bond with your kids. Not only is it a fun activity, but it’s also educational.
Children can learn all sorts of things from gardening, from identifying bugs to planting vegetables and flowers. They may even learn a bit of science while doing so!
To make gardening more exciting for your child, consider incorporating some crafty ideas. Let your child build their own scarecrow, which will not only add a sense of accomplishment but also remind them of what’s important in the garden.