Summer Activities for Kids: Gardening

Gardening is one of those summer activiites for kids at home that is not only fun, but teaches your child the importance of respecting the environment.

Here are some fun tips on encouraging your children to get more involved with the gardening tasks this summer:

  • watch them grow. Because kids like to see a direct relationship between their actions and results, planting seeds in clear plastic cups helps your child realize that his work is paying off. Planting beans, tomatoes and peppers in this way are good choices; the plants can then eventually be planted in the backyard garden to allow them more room to grow.
  • chart it up. Just like you chart your child's development, tracking the growth of plants is a great way to make your children go gaga over gardening. Creating a weekly growth progress chart is a fun way for kids to stay motivated about gardening. This idea works great for all types of plants, and is especially suitable for sunflowers.
  • go to the market. Setting up a family farmers' market is fun for everyone. Have each child pick which vegetable they'd like to grow. Then, when the veggies are ready to be picked, set up a farmers' market in the backyard and charge a small sum for each farmer's produce. Kids will love the reward and feel proud of their accomplishments.

Source: FamilyFun.com

Looking for more ideas for summer fun? Check out our Crafts section.