Kids-health is a site packed with hints and tips to keep you and the family healthy.
4 Reasons To Get The Kids Into Gardening
Responsibility – First of all, gardening helps teach kids to be responsible. Like having a pet, plants require food and water to live. However plants cannot demand food by begging or barking like a dog can. That is why kids have to be responsible to take care of what they plant or it will die. A garden is a long term commitment. By keeping kids on top of things they learn how to stay responsible and think about what the needs of their plants are.
Patience – Speaking of long term, plants require a lot of patience. They start out from a tiny seed and it might take a while for a sprout to show up. After that it takes even longer for the plant to mature and produce a crop. Taking care of a plant without seeing results can be hard for a child that has grown up with immediate gratification, but it is a good lesson for them to learn.
Hard Work – If the child stays responsible and patience and works hard then they will see the results in a real way. Hard work does pay off and that can be easily seen in a garden. All that time watering and weeding will get your child a crop that they can be proud of. Even if they only get a single strawberry or a tiny carrot they can be proud of themselves. After all, they made their own food!
Nutrition – Last but not least they can learn about nutrition. Many children have no idea where the food they eats comes from or how much work goes into producing it. By taking care of their own garden they can get some understanding of how hard it is to grow the fruits and vegetables they see in the supermarket. They are also more likely to want to eat what they grow, which means even picky eaters will take a bite of that carrot or tomato.
If you don’t own any land , how about setting up a window box or a patio container or two? We have some great suggestions here.
There are many reasons to give your child a garden to take care of. Gardening is a healthy and rewarding hobby that any person of any age can get into. It is also a valuable learning experience for young children too.
Sara is an active nanny as well as an active freelance writer. She is a frequent contributor of http://www.nannypro.com/. Learn more about her http://www.nannypro.com/blog/sara-dawkins/.