Gardening is popular in schools

廣東 陳冬秀

School gardening has become very popular during the coronavirus health crisis,with families and teachers saying hands-on lessons can be used to teach many subjects.Finding enough money to keep a school garden going smoothly can be a very tough task.Some experts and teachers,however,are finding creative ways to make it work effectively.

Susan Hobart is a retired elementary school teacher at Lake View Elementary School in Madison,Wisconsin.She oversees the school's large garden with 12 raised beds.“Gardens are a great way to get kids outside with a purpose.With gardens,kids get to see a beginning,a middle and an end to their project,”she said.Hobart also added that the gardens help to calm the kids and give them a whole different perspective they wouldn't have just sitting at desks.

Each spring,the school's program gets plant seedlings grown through a training program at a nearby prison.A church group comes during the spring break to prepare the garden for the children's return.Over the summer,a volunteer takes care of the garden.

School gardens can teach lessons in health,science,social studies,and even arts.Giving kids the opportunity to move outside,get their hands dirty,and find worms is a very good experience in their life.

Having a garden in a school is just as important as any other education.The act of gardening teaches us where our food comes from and teaches us to have respect for soil.If kids show respect for soil,they can have respect for themselves and for this planet as well.Gardening is not a hobby.Actually,it is a life skill and one of the most valuable lessons of humanity.

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Why did Hobart think gardening is beneficial to children?