While you may be fully aware of the benefits that gardening offers to you, take a moment to consider what it could do for your child. The experience is almost magical in a sense; after putting a little seed in the ground, and tending to it for a certain period of time, something soon grows that is completely different than what went in the ground. Exposing your child early to the wonders of nature will help ensure a lifelong fascination with the outdoors. If you are interested in getting your child involved in gardening, it is important to show them how enjoyable it can be. Use the following tips to assist you as you go along.
Throughout their development, your child looks to you for cues as to how they should act. They also learn by examining how you behave in certain situations. Therefore, it is important that, in addition to your gardening tasks, you have fun in the space. Laugh, joke and comment on the neat things that you observe. By watching you, your child will understand that being outside can be fun. Don’t be afraid to let your child know that you are excited about something. Show them how to pick fruits and vegetables, wash them off and enjoy a taste of what you have made. Get silly sometimes and laugh often. If you do, your child will follow suit.
After explaining that plants are fragile, make sure your child knows that it is okay to gently touch what they see. There is a lot to experience in a garden; kids like to be hands on and touch and smell the different plants. It helps them to become engaged in what they are doing. Therefore, encourage your child to use the senses of smell and touch, but make sure you model proper behavior around plants so they know what to do. Also, let them know that it is okay to get messy. Dig in the dirt, look for bugs, and have fun while tending to the plants. While it may be difficult for you to see them covered in dirt, remember that it is easy to clean up from a day in the garden and the experience itself is worth so much more than the little bit of time you will need to invest in the cleanup.
While it is important to get your child involved in the garden as a whole, you can also give them a little plot of earth that is just for them. Allow them to decide what is planted there and how it is put into the ground. While you may think that the seeds are too close to one another, or that it doesn’t make sense to put a flower right next to a vegetable, allow your child to have control. In the end, it isn’t a big deal as long as your child is happy and feels successful. While they are sure to get excited about the entire garden space, there is something particularly special about a little piece of land that just belongs to them.
Gardening is a wonderful activity for adults and children alike. Keep the information included here in mind as you introduce your child to the magic of nature.