Gardening with Kids:
Engaging the Senses and Growing Together
Gardening with kids is one of the most rewarding and grounding activities a family can experience. It’s not just about teaching them how plants grow; it’s about connecting them with the earth, nurturing a sense of responsibility, and stimulating their creativity. When you bring children into the garden, you open a world of discovery where the 5 senses come alive. This weekend’s class, "Gardening with Kids," will focus on how we can make the garden a space for learning, fun, and sensory exploration—perfect for the young and curious.
The 5 Senses in the Garden
Gardening naturally engages all five senses, making it a multi-dimensional learning experience for children.
Sight: From vibrant flowers to the shades of green in leafy vegetables, kids love observing how plants grow. Point out the colors of different vegetables, the shapes of leaves, and even the small insects that inhabit the garden. Encourage them to keep a "Garden Journal" where they can draw or document what they see as plants grow.
Smell: The garden is filled with wonderful aromas. Let your children rub their hands on herbs like mint, basil, or rosemary and smell their fingers afterward. This teaches them how scents can change as plants are touched or crushed.
Touch: Kids love to dig their hands in the soil and feel the different textures of leaves, stems, and flowers. Gardening is a natural sensory activity, and handling soil, feeling the warmth of the earth, or the roughness of bark helps them develop a deeper connection with nature.
Taste: There’s nothing more satisfying than tasting food you’ve grown yourself. Have children harvest a few fresh veggies or herbs and taste them on the spot. In our low desert climate (Zone 9b), vegetables like cherry tomatoes, carrots, or strawberries thrive and are easy to grow and enjoy fresh.
Hearing: The sounds of nature are soothing and rhythmic. In our class, we’ll make music with squash leaves and stems, showing kids that the garden has its own symphony! Using squash stems, we will teach them how to make simple wind instruments, combining the joy of gardening with musical creativity.
Therapeutic and Grounding Effects of Gardening
Gardening is naturally therapeutic for both adults and children. For kids, spending time in the garden can help them develop patience, responsibility, and mindfulness. Working with the earth grounds their energy, helping them feel calmer and more centered. Whether it’s the repetitive motions of digging, planting, or watering, these simple activities encourage focus, which can be a peaceful outlet for children’s energy.
It’s also a beautiful way to teach them about life cycles, growth, and nurturing living things. Watching their plants grow gives them a sense of accomplishment and pride, helping to build their self-esteem. In a world where children are constantly exposed to screens, the garden offers a much-needed break and a place for reflection.
Craft: Nature Stamps with Leaves and Flowers
We’ll be making a fun and simple craft using the natural materials from the garden! Kids will create their own Nature Stamps using leaves, flowers, and non-toxic paint.
Materials:
Assorted leaves, stems, and flowers from the garden (each with different textures)
Non-toxic paint (a variety of colors)
Sponges for dabbing paint onto leaves
Plain paper or cardstock
Instructions:
Gather leaves, stems, and flowers from the garden, selecting different shapes and sizes.
Dab non-toxic paint onto the leaves using a sponge, making sure not to use too much paint.
Place the painted side of the leaf onto a piece of paper or cardstock and press gently.
Remove the leaf to reveal a beautiful natural stamp.
Repeat the process using different plants and colors to create a whole garden scene on paper!
This craft will engage their creativity while reinforcing the idea that nature provides endless opportunities for fun and learning. Kids will leave the class with a piece of art that reminds them of the day they spent in the garden.
Music in the Garden: Squash Stem Instruments
Another exciting part of our class will involve using squash stems and leaves to make music. By carefully cutting and crafting squash stems into simple wind instruments, children will learn that even the plants themselves can be transformed into something new and fun. It’s a creative way to show that gardening is about much more than just growing food—it’s also about discovering how nature interacts with the world around us.
We’ll guide the kids through a simple process of hollowing out the stems and creating small wind instruments that can make soft sounds. This sensory experience will connect them even deeper to the garden, encouraging both play and experimentation.
Tips for Gardening with Kids at Home
Start with Fast-Growing Plants: Kids love seeing results, so choose plants that grow quickly, like radishes, sunflowers, or leafy greens. In our desert climate, sunflowers grow rapidly and add beauty to the garden.
Create a Kid-Sized Garden: Give children their own space or a small container where they can plant, tend, and care for their own little patch. They will take pride in their own garden, even if it's just a single pot!
Make It Fun: Turn gardening tasks into games. For example, see how many earthworms they can find or who can water the plants the best without overwatering!
Give Them Responsibility: Let kids take charge of certain tasks, like watering a specific plant or collecting seeds. This teaches them about responsibility while allowing them to feel included.
Conclusion
Gardening with children is about more than just teaching them to plant seeds; it’s about engaging all of their senses, fostering creativity, and connecting them to the earth in a therapeutic, hands-on way. Whether they’re feeling the soil between their fingers, smelling fresh herbs, tasting ripe veggies, or listening to the garden’s sounds, they will develop a deep connection with nature that can last a lifetime.
Join us for the Gardening with Kids Class, where we’ll explore the wonders of nature together, create art, make music, and plant seeds for the future! It’s a grounding, fun-filled day that your children won’t forget.