{"id":20342,"date":"2015-03-02T08:51:39","date_gmt":"2015-03-02T13:51:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/canadianbudgetbinder.com\/?p=20342"},"modified":"2025-01-28T09:59:44","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T09:59:44","slug":"should-gardening-be-a-subject-taught-in-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digitalskyweb.co\/canadianbudgetbinder.com\/2015\/03\/02\/should-gardening-be-a-subject-taught-in-school\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Gardening Should Be Included in School Curriculum"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/span>Estimated reading time: <\/span>10<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardening is an excellent way for adults to grow organic fruits and vegetables, plus save grocery money throughout the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why gardening should be included in school curriculum: teach kids about budgeting, financial responsibility, and the rewards of growing their food. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teaching Kids Life Skills In School<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What about teaching the kids about gardening and where their food comes from?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe budgeting<\/a> should be taught at school because some parents don’t understand the financial concept of spending less than they earn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a financial nerd, you may agree that teaching kids about money from a young age is essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the education system could include basic life skills and financial knowledge, it may have reduced the number of people with consumer debt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe your school does this already, but not many do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Basic math isn’t enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why stop there, though? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why not make school fun and educational at the same time by teaching other essential life skills, such as gardening? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m not talking about teaching kids to be master gardeners, just the simple process of growing food from seed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardening <\/span>As A Child In The UK<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Although it’s a different system in the UK, I can remember planting and growing seeds in school between the ages of 6 and 8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We used to produce simple things like garden cress<\/a> and mustard cress in little trays that we would label with our names.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My teachers didn’t necessarily teach us how to grow vegetables in an outdoor garden rather, we did it all indoors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can still garden in small indoor spaces because you don’t have a garden outside.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our gardening pots were left in the classroom on the window ledge, and every day, you were responsible for watering it and turning it around. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We would bring the plants home to our parents when fully grown. “Look what I grew, mummy,” I would happily say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, I still remember that.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It wasn’t for a particular subject that we grew the plants. It was just a kid’s activity that our teacher planned that year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not everyone’s plants survived, but my teacher said our responsibility was to care for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I learned from the gardening activity that I could grow something independently, but it took a long time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A long time for a kid might be weeks, although adult gardeners know your fruits and vegetables won’t be ready a week after you plant them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, my sister says they participate as a family in a community garden<\/a><\/strong>, and the children are involved from the beginning to the end. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s a much more elaborate garden than growing plants indoors<\/strong> when I was a kid, but it’s certainly given them a platform to grow with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s not as much space in the UK as in Canada, so we should take advantage of what we have and utilize it to the total capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canadian Gardening Experience<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When I asked Mrs.CBB about her childhood gardening experiences, she couldn’t remember any gardening happening at school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, her father was and still is what I would consider a master gardener, including flowers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has a massive garden, greenhouse, and plenty of fruit trees on his property. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I won’t get into the herb garden and flowers on the property because he is set up for everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He believes in growing food from seeds<\/a><\/strong> because we should know where it comes from and understand how to develop it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of all, he likes gardening as a hobby and to get exercise since he’s retired. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He taught Mrs. CBB so much about gardening. This was his response when I asked him whether he thought kids should be taught gardening at school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kids today are more worried about their video games, mobile phones and social media. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These same children will lack the simple knowledge of fending for themselves if they had to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We all have to eat and if we don’t know about gardening and foraging how else will they appreciate what our lands offer us?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Spring Gardening <\/span>For Kids<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Why-Gardening-Should-Be-Included-in-School-Curriculum\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Now that spring is around the corner, gardeners will start their gardens using containers from all over the house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have kids, this is a great time to get them involved, especially if your child’s school doesn’t teach gardening. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You’d be surprised that your child might enjoy learning about growing plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there are Canadian schools that have adopted gardening into the education system, it’s pretty hush-hush because I struggled to find any information about it online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some kids won’t like gardening as it’s too much work for them, but don’t be parents who let them be lazy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bring your child with you to buy your gardening seeds and have them pick out what they would like to try and grow based on climate and season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you try it once or twice and they don’t care about it, you give them the knowledge they need to get started if it intrigues them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explain to them what it means when you read the seed packet and how a particular fruit or vegetable needs to be planted and cared for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s one thing to show your child what to do, but it’s another when you allow them the hands-on experience and educate them with what you know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardening <\/span>And Canadian Curriculum <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Should Canadian schools implement gardening into the curriculum?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure… we have to eat, so why not teach them how to grow their food? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hypothetical, but you watched the movie “Cast Away.”… just saying. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You never know what might happen and how these skills might help save your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It might be challenging to start gardening at school unless your school has a greenhouse where you can grow almost anything year-round.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some vegetables and fruits may not be ready to harvest until the kids are out for summer, but don’t let that stop you as a teacher. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are plenty of herbs and quick-growing plants that you can work with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If space concerns an outdoor garden, the kids could create their gardening pot<\/a><\/strong>s, as I did in school, and leave them on the window to care for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Invite Gardening Experts to the School<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The teacher could also invite professional gardeners to speak to the students, giving them an even better knowledge point. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plenty of organizations would donate their time to educate kids about gardening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another option is to start gardening in the spring and have volunteers from the class rotate each week to clean the outdoor garden or indoor plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This teaches the children responsibility; they might even treat this as their summer job<\/a><\/strong> without pay, but the experience is valuable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone needs to weed the plants, so why not teach the kids about weeds<\/a><\/strong>, dirt, and seasonal changes within our climate?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another perk to kids’ gardening would be the sense of accomplishment during harvest time, and they eat the food they grew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardening also brings the kids together and builds community within the school system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It may also encourage team-building from a young age, which will go a long way later in life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what benefits would a child get from learning about gardening at school?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plenty, let me explain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nutrition and Healthy Living<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Developing healthy eating habits from a young age is crucial to what happens when the child gets older. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experimenting with different fruits and vegetables might be easier if the child learns to grow them independently. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s a sense of pride and a desire to try what they’ve grown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Healthy living begins at home by eating nutritious foods and nutrition education. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is another excellent reason to start gardening in schools because teachers can teach the children how to make better food choices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some schools have cooking classes and teach the students about the Canada Food Guide, which is excellent, but let’s dig deeper into nature and our food sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patience and Team building<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Not many kids have patience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They don’t even know what the word means sometimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life is chaotic at best for a child because they are naturally curious and want to learn and go, go, go all the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember my sister-in-law always telling her son he needs patience; now that we have our son, I understand why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simple, no-fuss, easy gardening with kids will motivate their team-building spirit if they work in groups and initiate patience to look after the plants and watch them grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Financial Understanding<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Although kids don’t pay for everyday expenses, gardening will help them understand how much work goes into growing food and how it can save them money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please don’t assume they will know; teach them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suppose we didn’t grow our herb garden every summer; it would cost a fortune in the grocery store. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may find that if you take your kids grocery shopping, they may just be more alert to the prices of the foods they grow. “Wow, look, Mom, it costs x amount to buy these apples.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have a rain barrel and time, you can grow just about anything for a fraction of what you pay at the grocery store, and it tastes 100% better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exercise\/Physical Activity<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This ties in with the obesity levels and the fact that many of us overeat<\/strong><\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we can implement daily activities along with healthy eating, it may help us maintain a healthy weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The best part about gardening, like cleaning your house or any other indoor\/outdoor activities, is that it is a great way to get your physical activity in for the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’ve never gardened before, let me tell you that it takes quite a bit out of you physically. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gardening entails planting, watering, weeding, and harvesting, which takes lots of work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let your kids be part of your routine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get the kids out from in front of the television, put down the video games, turn off social media, and start getting active outside with your kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may not think they will benefit, but years from now, like my wife remembers gardening with her father, they will reminisce about their parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Environmental and Nature Education<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Environmental education surrounding gardening and growing plants seems solely based on planting trees because they “clean the air” we breathe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dumping waste products is bad news, so recycling is high on the education agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though most of the breathable oxygen is generated by plankton blooms, nothing is discussed about the unassuming organisms in school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recycling is only good if the products are reused. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our city will not accept certain items in the recycling program because they cannot generate any income from it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though they keep drilling recycling into the children’s heads, the truth about what happens to it is not necessarily the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Proper education about reducing packaging and consuming less would probably be better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You are more aware of your contributions to this world and the consequences of your actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experimenting Skills<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You may think there is no room for gardening in the classroom because it can be taught at home and wastes time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I disagree because, just like budgeting<\/a><\/strong>, not all parents grasp finance, so how can they teach their children?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The same applies to gardening so kids can grow their food by teaching these life skills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s an endless education loop on a topic that we need to survive as humans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even if the education system in Canada isn’t willing to fund a gardening program for the kids, at least allowing gardening projects throughout the year is better than nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Discussion:<\/strong> When you were a child, do you remember learning about gardening at school or at home?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please leave your comments below. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks for reading, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. CBB <\/p>\n\n\n\n