April 11, 2020
Planning a kid's gardening activity with nature!
Are you looking for new ideas for home-school projects, or any alternative to the kids spending free time playing video games?
Did you know that April is Kids Garden Month? It is! And KidsGardening.org offers an endless resource of easy parent and kid gardening activities. This spring they narrowed it down to the Top 10 Recommended Activities for you and your children to do together while staying at home. And they primarily require supplies you're likely to already have around the house.
There are also some great ideas in this Seattle Times article: Your garden can be a treasure trove of activities for your kids.
Here's where working with nature comes in. You can set up the activity as a Gut Garden — for you and for the kids!
Machaelle has already set us up for working with nature to make small, gradual changes in our individual homes and lives to address environmental crisis (Be A Change Maker with Nature).
Here, we're adjusting those same instructions slightly to give you a simple way to include nature's input and get results that will make you, your kids and your environment smile.
GUT GARDENING, WITH A TWIST
You'll be using your guts to partner and work consciously with nature to set up the project, and to help your kids partner with nature too. It's easy. No PKTT (muscle testing) to learn and no testing to do.
For the Parent, Grandparent, Adult, Guardian . . . "Grown Up"
Step 1.
Sit down and focus your attention on nature. Say: "Hello nature. I need help in setting up a kids gardening activity for ____________ [name your child/children and give their age(s)]. What we'd like to do is: ____________ [name the activity/goal]."
You don't have to be super-detailed in the activity to start. Here are a few ideas:
If you would like nature's input on which project to choose and how to set it up, say: "Hello nature. I need help in choosing and setting up a kids gardening activity for ____________[name your child/children, and give their age(s)]."
Step 2.
After saying this to nature, you may wish to also say thank you. Then, as you move on with your day and week, pay attention to the ideas and thoughts that come your way. Nature will respond and communicate, offer suggestions and ideas in a myriad of ways. You just need to pay attention.
Step 3.
Act on the options and ideas nature sends your way. Make notes, get the supplies together, plan and set up the activity. And have fun!
The kids can work with nature too!
Step 1.
When you're ready to begin the activity, let the kids know they can ask nature for help with the project. All they need to say is: "Hello nature. I'd like your help with this garden activity I'm about to do. We're going to _______________ [say what the activity will be, such as 'plant something from kitchen scraps' or 'watch how a seed grows' or 'count how many lady bugs are in the yard' or 'make a mud puddle for butterflies']."
Step 2.
Say thank you to nature. Encourage your kids to share any ideas they have, from where in the yard they should make that mud puddle for butterflies, to its shape and size.
Step 3.
Get on with the project, act on the ideas that come up and enjoy!
The Perelandra Garden Workbook, Part 1: Introduction and Gut Gardening
The Gardening Series