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Gardening is a rewarding activity that teaches children several essential life skills. It keeps them close to nature, stimulates their senses, and improves their mental and physical wellbeing. Gardening activities provide kids with a wonderful opportunity to connect with nature, fostering a sense of responsibility and curiosity. Louise Curley, a blogger, shares her experience of gardening as a kid. She says, “I loved gardening when I was little. My first real gardening memory is being given a small part of my parents’ garden and spending my pocket money on alpines from my local DIY store. I would spend hours with a trowel digging, weeding and just generally messing about in the soil. I loved it, being outdoors and watching the bees and butterflies landing on the sedums I’d planted (i).”
So, here we bring you some engaging gardening activities for kids that you and your child can work on together. These activities are simple yet interesting enough to keep your child captivated. Besides, they will teach your child about the beauty of nature and how to take care of it with patience and dedication.
Key Pointers
- Gardening improves your child’s physical and mental well-being.
- Gardening helps children develop their sensory inputs.
- Maintaining a garden enhances your child’s botanical knowledge.
- Vegetable gardening teaches children the values of hard work and patience.
- Decorating the garden with painted pots fosters your child’s creativity.
Which Plants Attract Children?
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Kids usually get attracted to bright colors and big things. Also, they get bored and discouraged easily, so the first gardening experience should be fun and fruitful.
Make a kid-size garden for the little ones to handle easily. Start out with wild flowers. They are of various colors and are easily available in the market. They also look good in small colored pots.
Here are some choices of plants for your kids to start their gardening expedition with:
- Wild Strawberries
- Lavenders
- Sunflowers
- Cherries
Besides being fun and educational, it can help your kid develop a sensory experienceiActivities that help children develop a better understanding of the world around them by using their five senses. which will help them to connect with the world.
Your child learns to use his senses from birth. Through gardening activities, your child will quickly establish connections with the world by feeling, observing, touching, exploring, creating, and more.
Things Which Develop Sensory Inputs
The following activities while gardening will help develop sensory inputs in your child:
- Touching and rubbing various plants and flowers
- Touching soil, worms and such
- Picking flowers
- Harvesting home grown vegetables
- Digging holes
- Shoveling
- Carrying pots
Top 12 Fun Gardening Activities For Kids
Here are some interesting activities for kids. Let your kid pick out the best one, and don’t worry about them getting dirty or pulling out worms and plants.
1. Watering plants
It is the most basic of all gardening activities.
- It can be easily accomplished by children of almost all ages.
- Get your child a cute watering can. These you can easily get from any departmental stores.
- Fix a time or day for watering.
2. Cleaning the garden
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It is important that you teach your kid to clean the garden.
- This will help to make the atmosphere hygienic.
- You can buy some good child rakes to remove dead leaves and flowers from the garden.
3. Pulling out weeds
Teach your child to pull out weeds from the flower beds.
- Weeds make the garden look dirty and have no use.
- Teach your child about different types of wild plants, as well as the methods of pruning and weeding them.
4. Picking fruits or vegetables
This is one of everyone’s favorites of all time.
- Children love picking fruits and vegetables from their home garden.
- You can make them get involved in the kitchen too, to make some delicious food, pickles or jellies.
Be watchful5. Composting the soil
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Teach your children the process of compostingiA process of recycling organic materials into nutrient-rich soil through natural decomposition. soil.
- Teach them the significance of rich organic soil.
- Tell them how good soil helps plants grow quickly.
- Also, teach them the importance of mulching.
Here a post on composting for kids with interesting activities.
6. Building a bird feeder
Make a bird feeder with your kid with old plastic bottles.
- Drill holes in it and keep food for the birds.
- This will encourage birds to visit your garden regularly and your kid too will start appreciating nature, and grow a love for birds.
7. Learning about insects
Learning about insects could be one of the best spring activities for kids.
- A pair of magnifying glasses would be helpful.
- This will surely help them to get over their fear of bugs.
8. Painting the pots
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Let your child color the pots.
- This will make the garden look bright and colorful.
- Engaging your child in drawing, painting and designing pots can ignite their passion for art.
9. Creating a fairy garden
Let imagination drive your kids wild.
- Ask them to make a fairy garden with color pebbles, sticks, shells and pots.
- You would be amazed to see their faces lit up with joy.
10. Coloring the rocks
Color can play a great role in brightening up your garden.
- Ask your kid to color various rocks.
- Let them dry and then arrange them near your flower pots.
11. Playing garden scavenger hunt
Organizing a garden scavenger hunt for kids is easy and enjoyable.
- Create a checklist with items like flowers, leaves, and insects.
- Distribute clipboards, pencils, and bags for collecting.
- Explain the rules, emphasizing respect for nature.
- Start the hunt and set a reasonable time limit.
- Kids can explore, collect, and meet at a designated point.
- Review the checklist together, discussing their findings and observations.
12. Doing garden yoga
Garden yoga for kids is a delightful outdoor activity.
- Set up mats in a garden, introduce nature-inspired poses like Tree and Butterfly, and add animal-themed poses.
- Incorporate imaginative games, group activities, and a calming meditation.
- It fosters physical activity, mindfulness, and a connection to nature in a playful way.
Make Gardening More Enjoyable
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Here are some quick ways to let your kid enjoy gardening:
- Allow your children to maintain their own garden spaces by choosing plants and layouts of their choice.
- Let them also plant seeds and seedlingiA young plant, one that grows from the seed. — you will be amazed to learn how eager they are to see the first sprout popping up from the ground.
- Allow them to explore and learn things on their own to boost their creativity and give them a sense of ownership.
- Buy kid-sized tools for your little ones.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is a sensory garden for kids?
A sensory garden is designed for kids to activate and use all their senses. Such experiences help trigger neurological sensations and introduce them to new experiences (1).
2. What plants are sensory?
Examples of sensory plants include chamomile, lavender, basil, curry plant, rosemary, and aloe.
3. Why is gardening important to kids?
Gardening activities can help your child practice several skills at the same time. For example, moving from one plant to another engages locomotor skillsiThe abilities that are crucial for a child’s mobility and physical growth, including crawling, jumping, running. . Smelling and touching flowers or plants activate their senses and teach them to care about nature. Engaging in gardening can be a learning activity that teaches children responsibility, boosts their creativity, and helps build self-confidence (2).
4. What are some essential gardening safety tips for kids?
For a safe gardening experience, supervise your children when they use tools and teach them how to handle plants and soil to avoid irritations. Also, ensure the garden area is free of harmful chemicals and sharp objects.
Whether you have a child who is always glued to their screens or enjoys the outdoors, these garden activities for kids are perfect for both. Staying connected with the soil through different activities such as rock coloring, soil composting, or simply planting and watering can keep your children engaged and stimulate their senses. So go ahead and encourage your children to spend more time outside and help them make it enjoyable and easy. You never know; your little gardener might become an expert in no time.
Infographic: Different Types Of Gardening Tools For Children
Gardening can be a fun-filled activity for children. Introducing gardening to your child can be easy with safe and convenient tools. However, selecting the proper gardening tools is challenging, considering the variety of available equipment. Read through the infographic below to learn about various gardening tools for children. Illustration: Momjunction Design Team
Illustration: Top 12 Creative Gardening Activities For Kids
Image: Stable Diffusion/MomJunction Design Team
Explore the fun of gardening with children! Watch this video and discover how to make a captivating dinosaur garden.
Personal Experience: Source
MomJunction articles include first-hand experiences to provide you with better insights through real-life narratives. Here are the sources of personal accounts referenced in this article.
i. Gardening for kids – The campaign for school gardens.https://wellywoman.wordpress.com/2012/03/14/gardening-for-kids-the-campaign-for-school-gardens/
References
- Sensory Gardens.
https://naturalearning.org/sensory-gardens/ - Gardening for children.
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/gardening-safety
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