Benefits Of Gardening In Early Childhood

Parents! We all know that 21st-century children loves staring at laptop/tablet/smartphone screen for cartoon and online games, which is obviously not good at all. But that doesn’t mean there’s no way to distract them and drain their excessive energy.

Gardening is a good example.

Kids always love playing outside, like running in the backyard and getting dirt on their clothes and don’t you know that gardening is really an educative activity?

No? Well, this article will blow your mind!

Engage Moderate Exercise

Don’t think that gardening is just for the elderly, it’s true physical activity.

Tasks, like raking, turning compost, and digging, acquire multiple muscles in the lower and upper body. An afternoon spent in the garden will probably take you 250 – 500 calories/hour (based on how intense the gardening activities). And sore muscles on the next morning is a common thing.

Improve Memory And Focus

Regular gardening involvement makes a great improvement in people’s alertness, social skills, and cognitive abilities. That’s no exception for kids!

The reason lies in the act of gardening, according to one report, it’s like a therapeutic treatment that is effective particularly in speech and rehabilitating motor after sickness.

Also, due to American Journal of Public Health, when allowed to access to green space frequently, kids will perform better mentally and be relieved ADHD (if available), helping them improve memory.

Relieve Stress

A study in 2011 found out wonderful stress-relieving effects of gardening in Amsterdam. Accordingly, it helps to decrease a huge amount of cortisol (a specific hormone released by stress) in participants when they are sent out to green space.

Gardening lets them be alone, do multiple physical exercises while breathing fresh air. It gives peace in their mind. People who have a habit of gardening even have fewer stressing occasions/year than those who don’t.

With kids, this hobby gives amazing benefits when they grow to adults because when faced stress, they don’t have to “learn” to relax. It’s naturally in their hobby since childhood.

Teach Children About The Environment

Gardening teaches your kids about the responsibility of taking care for each plant they have planted. That not only joyfully enhance their good personality and curiosity but also improve their respect and appreciation to the environment.

More than teaching them about variable fruits and veggies’ name, gardening accretes kids’ knowledge about the step-by-step process to take care of their garden. From preparing the seeds and land to organize the schedule.

Also, they can learn about the health benefit of this organic food compared to the non-organic kinds, encouraging them to eat more healthily.

Teach Them To Keep Patience

As mentioned, the act of gardening teaches children to organize the schedule, allowing them to know that gardening isn’t an instant entertainment like when they plant something in an online farm game.

They make them wait and have to wait. Gradually, it creates the characteristics of being patience in kids.

Build A Sense Of Confidence

The process of taking care for plants and seeing them grow healthily, bloom and produce fruits will build a sense of patience and also confidence in kids.

Based on a study of Dr. Wendy Matthews, gardening helps them feel more capable. Clearly, they can engage in a real-life activity that they thought they just enabled to do online or saw their parents do in reality.

It’s like us on the very first time growing a tiny seed into a pot, watering it and watching it grown into a plant – feel like superman with magic powers.

Conclusion

Aside from such huge benefits that I’ve just mentioned above, gardening also helps kids to improve creativity, motor skills as well as enhance sensory development. Of course, good preparation and consideration of parents will make a good result of that “gardening course” for your kids.

Nothing is complicated, just take note of those sharp tools like shovel or scissors and be aware of the weather forecast that day. Based on my experience, I believe that your kids will be addicted to this outdoor activity.