5/15/21 | A growing experience | An article from Gardners Path Submitted by Lena Clark
As outdoor activities go, gardening is hard to beat for promoting well-rounded development in youngsters. Whether the garden is in pots on an apartment balcony, a community patch or right out the back door, kids who engage with it are harvesting a whole lot more than food and flowers.
Gardening with children is great fun and you can begin in any month of the year. From planning and craft-making to planting and harvesting, you can treat your kids to fun activities any time!
When my daughter was small, we had a raised vegetable bed with a few tomato plants, peppers, and beans.
When our first green pepper was ready to pick, a crow swooped down and snatched it – pepper, plant, roots – and flew off, leaving my little gardener open-mouthed and wide-eyed.
Whether you have a few clay pots on a patio or an acre out back, gardening is amazing and your kids are going to love it!
I’m a fan of keeping things simple. While it’s cute to get the pink and purple watering can with the daisy spout, an old plastic iced-tea pitcher works just as well.
Below is a list of supplies I’ve found useful in gardening with the kids in my family. Make it fun to gather them up with the activity below. And don’t forget the camera to capture the fun times ahead!
Gardening Supplies Scavenger Hunt Kids’ Activity
- Parent decides what supplies are necessary and how many to have for each child
- Parent hides supplies around the yard.
- Each child is given a list of the items hidden.
- Child who finds the most items is awarded a prize related to gardening, like a new hat or pair of gloves.
- Have kids note what they did today on their own calendar. Noting each activity creates a handy reference for next year.
Supply Ideas
- Long-handled digging shovels
- Garden rakes
- Hoes and long-handled cultivators
- Small trowels
- Small claw/cultivator tool for breaking up clods of soil and loosening weeds
- Tape measures
- Craft scissors (or pruners, with adult assistance)
- Watering cans
- String
- Wooden craft sticks
- Plastic baskets
- Kneeling towels/pads (optional)
- Hats, sunscreen, and sunglasses
- Calendar
- Notebooks, pencils, and permanent markers
- Seed packets
Read the rest of the article Gardening With Children
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