Released March 27, 2009
MURFREESBORO, Ark. - Planting and tending a garden can be a lot of fun for you and your children, and it doesn't have to be a big project, says Robbie McKinnon, Pike County extension agent with the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture.
"It can be as simple as some flowers and herbs planted in containers on your porch or patio," she says. "Many opportunities are available when you begin a gardening project with children."
By planting and maintaining a garden, you'll discover many exciting things about your environment, McKinnon says. The list of exciting things is endless: how the weather, temperature and seasons affect all living things, how living things come out of seeds and soil, how the birds, earthworms, bees and toads help in the garden, etc.
Gardening projects can keep the children's interest and enthusiasm alive over the period of time it takes the garden to complete its cycle. Gardening incorporates language and literacy, science and math concepts, social science and creative arts.
"When children are engaged in gardening projects they also learn curiosity, cooperativeness, respect for living things, persistence and caring," McKinnon says. Gardening opportunities give children a place to practice motor skills.
Science is the most obvious area of learning associated with gardening projects. The garden is full of opportunities to teach science. The children will learn how to deal with weeds, insufficient rainfall, temperature and pests. Children gain an appreciation for the environment when they are exposed to nature.
Gardening offers tremendous opportunities for language development. Children will be introduced to many new words as they explore the garden. They'll need to communicate as they plan and complete tasks, make observations and record their findings, according to McKinnon.
Literacy skills develop as children read books, do research, label plants, and follow recipes. Children use math skills often when they work in the garden. They count seeds as they plant, using one-to-one correspondence. Counting requires linking a single number name with one object and only one at a time.
"Children can observe growth and measure plants. They classify as they observe and record data and can draw conclusions," says McKinnon.
The garden lends itself to exploration through the arts. Children can construct images from the garden though drawing, painting and modeling.
Gardening can instill important life skills from working in the garden, according to McKinnon.
"They develop confidence as they work and maintain the garden," she says. "They may conquer fears as they encounter new creatures in their explorations, examine them, hold them in their hands and return them to their homes."
A garden requires people to wait as plants grow at their own pace. The garden gives children opportunities to slow down and take time to explore in detail. Children who observe closely will notice small changes from day to day, large changes from week to week. They learn the need for patience and careful observation.
Be willing to take things slowly, McKinnon advises. This is a special time to cherish with children, not chores and endless work.
For more information about gardening, contact your county extension office or go to http://www.uaex.edu and select Home and Garden. The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of Agriculture.
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http://www.uaex.edu/news/march2009/0327childs_garden.htm
Contact: Lamar James, (501) 671-2187, ljames@uaex.edu
