The Benefits of Gardening with your children
Everyone has heard that being outdoors is good for your health. Most will also know that planting flowers can be therapeutic. But did you know that gardening also has amazing developmental benefits for children too? Gardening offers amazing opportunities for them to play, learn and grow all in one place!
Here are just some of the key benefits of gardening with children:
Encourages Healthy Eating
As many parents will know it can be hard to get kids to eat those fruit and veggies and these are so vital for the brain and body development. If they grow their own they will start to gain a sense of pride in what they are eating as it is what they have nurtured and created. In turn it helps emphasise the importance of healthy eating and they will begin to love eating all those home-grown fruits and veggies!
Enhances fine motor skills
Digging the dirt, placing seeds in pots and watering all make use of children’s fine motor skills and help strengthen them without them even realising. As children grow, they develop important motor skills which then help them improve their academic skills such writing and cutting.
Introduces Science and Maths
Gardening is a fantastic way to introduce the world of science and maths. From measuring the soil to planting their first seed, children become curious about what happens next and begin to monitor the progress each day. As a result, they are leaning basic steps of the scientific process and as they get older they begin to understand the impact of sunlight and water on growth of a plant. A science lesson in your own home!
Fosters Family Bonding
Spending time with family in the garden, planting your flowers and vegetables, is a great way to bond. It can also lead to working together to make meals using the vegetables they have grown.
Teaches Responsibility
Gardening can be a great way to teach children responsibility. They learn to have to take care of the seeds each day for them to be able to grow into healthy plants.
Teaches Patience
Children are very much used to immediate gratification but with gardening being a slow process, they have to learn to be patient and wait for the flowers and vegetables to grow! And the waiting makes the moment the flower or vegetable sprouts so much more exciting!
