![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.crescentgarden.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Lily-Nguyen_Image1-225x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\nLearn about the ways you can engage your kids in the garden to improve their motor skills with container gardening activities such as planting & watering.<\/p>\n
While container gardening is the perfect hands-on activity for kids to learn about the environment and enjoy the outdoors, it can also be a fun way for kids to practice fine motor skills. Doing tasks that require small movements and coordination of the hands, fingers, and wrists exercise the small muscles and joints and help them learn to work together to complete a task \u2014 think picking up Cheerios from a tray or tying shoelaces. So many container garden tasks require a gentle, coordinated touch, such as planting seeds at the proper depth and picking berries without damaging nearby foliage. As a garden is constantly evolving, it\u2019s an ideal place for keeping kids engaged in a diverse range of tasks that must be tended to over time.<\/p>\n
When gardening with kids, it\u2019s important to model the tasks at hand. Do each activity together and be sure to give them constructive feedback so that they can learn by doing and create positive associations with their time in the garden.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Here are 10 container garden activities and tips that can help kids develop fine motor skills:<\/p>\n
1. Planting seeds<\/strong><\/p>\n Start with large seeds, such as beans, peas, and sunflowers so young kids can easily pick them up one at a time. As kids gain confidence, they can progress to smaller seeds, such as beets and nasturtiums. Tomatoes and peppers are some of the smaller seeds that can easily be planted one at a time. (Tiny seeds, like lettuce and basil, are usually planted a pinch full at a time or sprinkled over the soil surface.)<\/p>\n Mark out your planting area with string or by laying sticks on the ground. Consult seed packets to determine the proper spacing between plants and calculate how many seeds you\u2019ll need for your planting area. Also consult the seed packet for how deeply to plant the seeds.<\/p>\n Kids can use their fingers to make small holes in the soil. To estimate the distance between each hole, a hand \u201cshaka\u201d (this is the length from the tips of pinkie to thumb when a hand is stretched wide) or the length of a trowel\u2019s blade can be used as examples to model creative ways to measure. Do a similar activity to indicate proper planting depth. A half-inch might equal the length from the tip of the index finger to the first knuckle.<\/p>\n When all of the holes are made, rather than trying to reach into a seed packet, pour the seeds into a small cup that kids can easily pick up individual seeds.\u00a0 Encourage them to be intentional about how many seeds they are planting in each hole. For most seeds, plant two per hole to ensure that at least one will grow. As an additional reminder ofwhat areas are planted, save the covering the holes as the last step after you see that each hole has been planted.<\/p>\n 2. Transplanting<\/strong><\/p>\n Working with seedlings requires kids to be gentle with delicate transplants so as to not damage the roots or plant itself. In most cases, the root ball can be pushed out through the bottom of the tray with a stick. If the rootball is stuck, scoot it out\u00a0 with a spoon. Sometimes you can loosen stubborn root balls by rolling or massaging the container garden to loosen the roots. Then, have kids gently hold the rootball in the cup of their hand, or for very sturdy plants, by the leaves. Never hold seedling by its stem \u2014 if the stem breaks, the seedling dies. (Leaves and roots, on the other hand, will usually regrow.)<\/p>\n If the soil is nice and loose (and hopefully it is, because that\u2019s what plants like!) then kids can dig holes by hand or with a narrow transplanting trowel<\/a>. Follow the same spacing guidelines as when you\u2019re planting seeds. Making and spacing the holes first before planting is always a good idea. Always plant seedlings at the same depth as they were in their pot \u2014 in other words, don\u2019t plant any of the stem. (The only common exception is tomatoes, which can be planted deeper.)<\/p>\n 3. Digging with hand trowel<\/strong><\/p>\n Hand trowels <\/a>are great tools for digging holes for larger transplants, adding compost to soil, or placing mulch around a plant\u2019s base. If kids will be digging holes, remind them to make a neat pile of soil right next to the hole so that they can use it to backfill around the plant afterwards. If they are transferring matter from one place to another, encourage them to hold the trowels steady and make sure the valuable nutrients can make it to the plant! You can even make it a game to try not to spill any soil.<\/p>\n 4. Tilling the soil with a hand rake<\/strong><\/p>\n Cultivators<\/a> are great tools to develop good grip while leveling soil, mixing in compost, or prepping a bed for planting. Remind kids that soil is filled with living organisms and should be treated with care and respect. Have them gently sift through the soil with their hands to look for worms, sowbugs, and other evidence of soil life.<\/p>\n 5. Harvesting<\/strong><\/p>\n From plucking tomatoes off the vine to pulling a carrot out of the ground, harvesting is no doubt the most rewarding gardening task! It is also a great way to teach kids that each plant requires a different technique for harvesting and can allow them to continuously practice.<\/p>\n 6. Pruning<\/strong><\/p>\n Picking the yellowing or dead leaves off of plants not only encourages kids to train their eyes for responding to plant needs, but it can also help them incorporate different movements into one action such as pinching, twisting, and pulling.<\/p>\n 7. Weeding <\/strong><\/p>\n Kids can practice their plant identification skills while weeding and removing unwanted plants from the garden. They can use hand tools like a weed extractor<\/a> or simply use kid-sized gloves to efficiently pull out weeds.<\/p>\n 8. Watering<\/strong><\/p>\n Make sure not to over-fill each watering can and to use an appropriate size for your child\u2019s age. Having a watering can<\/a> or sprayer<\/a> for each child that you will be working with will help keep down waiting time while filling them up at the hose and therefore focused on the activity. If possible, water at the base of the plant, ideally when it\u2019s cloudy or the sun is low to minimize evaporation.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.crescentgarden.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2-Developing-Fine-Motor-Skills-in-Kids-with-Container-Gardening-copy-300x192.jpg\")
<\/p>\n