Dirt Under the Finger Nails: Why Every Child Needs to Get Outside!

School is almost out and I bet you are looking for projects to do with the kids over the summer. Why not get your children outside to learn about nature and enjoy hands-on adventures in your own garden or at a nature camp? Getting outside helps reduce stress, decreases obesity, increases vitamin D consumption and may actually make your kids smarter! Research from Science Daily indicates that exposure to a natural soil bacterium, Mycobacterium vaccae, may decrease anxiety and also improve learning! So get the kids outside to dig in the dirt.

Kids love to garden if given some simple instructions. The amount of supervision you provide will depend on your children’s ages. Once you’ve helped kids get started, let them choose the plants, help dig the holes and nurture the garden. Children are attracted to plants that are edible, carnivorous, fragrant, blooming and have foliage with interesting textures. Some plants that children enjoy are sunflowers, herbs, tomatoes, pumpkins and marigolds. They will love checking on the progress of their plants each day and are more likely to actually eat the vegetables they grow!

To enhance their experience, give them a few simple pieces of equipment. Many companies sell child-size garden gloves, watering cans and trowels. Also provide a magnifying glass, a pair of binoculars, and a camera. None of these items need be expensive! With a trowel or spade, children can dig and create their own garden or just discover the tiny creatures that thrive in the soil. A magnifying glass can bring these creatures up close and personal. A pair of binoculars lets kids explore the tree tops and seek out the birds visiting the feeders. A camera allows a child to record the wonders they are discovering.  They will be using all their senses and their imagination.

Here are a few fun kid-friendly ideas to consider:

Plant a Pizza Garden:  Help your children build a small raised garden bed in the sun in the shape of a circle. Fill the bed with a good soil mixture. Divide the circle into pizza wedges and then let the kids plant a “pizza garden” filled with their favorite veggie and herb toppings including Roma tomatoes, onion, pepper, basil, oregano, parsley and garlic. Plant a different veggie or herb in each wedge.

Garden in a Pot:  Container gardening is very popular and easy for kids to manage. Give them some inexpensive terracotta pots, let them paint them some fun colors, add container mix and plant flower or vegetable seeds or seedlings. Sunflowers and patio tomatoes are good choices.

Go Vertical: Don’t have much space? Go up instead of out. Vertical gardening is one of the hottest new trends. Make a teepee out of 3 or 4 branches you find in the yard that are 4-5’ tall or with bamboo poles and use twine to secure the poles. Place the teepee in a sunny garden bed and plant vining plants such as pole beans, sweet peas or morning glories. When the vines cover the teepee, small children have a secluded place to relax in the center of the teepee. 

Compost: Start a compost bin and watch your kids learn first-hand the science of decomposition and an appreciation of good dirt. Not to mention, they will be captivated watching worms squirming around in the developing compost.

Expand their Learning:  Southern Conservation Trust offers wonderful opportunities for kids to learn about nature, animals and the food we eat. Sign up now for one or all of their six weeks of Camp WILD, held this summer at SCT’s Environmental Education Center in Fayetteville. Each week will offer a different nature-based theme, and include games, crafts, live animal encounters, s’mores around the campfire,  and even a water fight! Give your children a chance to put down their devices, get down and dirty, and have an outdoor adventure. For information on Camp WILD, go to sctlandtrust.org/summer-camps.