Introduction
Gardening is a favorite pastime among adults and children alike. It requires some physical exertion and mental investment but offers far more benefits in return. Since gardening is a mini foray into nature every time you step into your backyard or balcony, it is important to unwind in this manner regularly. It is also an excellent tool for teaching kids about recycling and composting. Irrespective of your child’s age, it is imperative to be aware of global natural conditions and environmental concerns. As they are the upcoming generation who will preserve earth’s future, it is important to guide them properly.
Gardening can teach kids the wonderful arts of recycling and composting. Recycling refers to the act of using any waste item for various other purposes, like using empty cans and pen stands and empty bottles as vases, by repurposing and redecorating them. As for composting, it refers to the act of using microbes, water, air, and soil along with vegetable and garden scraps for creating a rich, fertile soil and utilizing wet waste. And gardening makes good use of both. But before that, you need to explain to kids the benefits of recycling and composting for the environment, to convince them.
Benefits Of Recycling And Composting For The Environment
- Recycling saves energy and conserves resources. For example, by using waste materials as flower pots, you will not have to waste time or money buying it. This principle is practiced on a larger scale by most companies and products.
- Composting prevents climate change and improves soil quality. By using bacteria and microbes to convert waste into rich soil, methane emission is prevented, lowering global warming risks. Also, composting reduces usage of pesticides and artificial fertilizers in farming, helping keep soil and earth healthier.
Tips On Using Gardening To Teach Kids About Composting And Recycling
Assign Your Kids Solo Responsibility
To teach your kids, waste management and recycling, assign a few plants or a small area to your child to grow plants in. But do not buy them any pots or special seeds. They need to collect them from the food they eat or buy and find waste, unused, recyclable items at home to use as pots. Make it seem like a fun challenge and always be available to provide information but not solutions. Let them figure it out and grow environmentally conscious in the process.
Recycle And Use Household Waste
While recycling, do not forget to use any leftover items like old clothes and dry leaves as well. These mundane items may slip the mind but do well as gardening accessories and a composting ingredient, respectively. Avoid using animal products and dairy to keep the compost bin from rotting or smelling bad.
Keep A Composting Jar Or Bin
Assign a composting jar or bin, as available to your kids. Help them layer and compost the ingredients by putting the wet ingredients like moldy fruits and vegetable peels first, before layering some dry ingredients like dried leaves and shredded paper. Stir and add some soil into the mix. Many people put worms into the mix as well, to keep things fun and fertile. Remember to add water, stir, and keep it warm. Within a few days, your kid will have rich, fertile soil and zero waste on their hands. Upkeep the practice.
Teach Kids The Connection Between Nutrition And Recycling
It is important to explain to children the connection between waste, recycling, and nutrition. Since most waste we use comes from food or items we use, it is ideal to be conscious. As foods containing oil, meat, or dairy cannot be used for composting, it really narrows it down, unless your children become mindful about the food they eat and the things they use. This will keep them environmentally friendly and responsible.
Start A Recycling Jar
It is ideal to start a recycling jar. Every time anyone in the family recycles something, a colored marble assigned to them is put into a sealed jar with a hole. Your kid can be the purple marble, while you can be blue, their sibling can be yellow, and so on. At the end of every month, the jar will be opened and the marbles counted. Whoever has the most marbles wins a prize. This keeps the spirit of recycling going in the house thanks to a healthy, little dose of friendly competition.
Conclusion
Gardening is a great way of making kids environmentally aware and active. It not only helps lower their stress and anxieties, but also enhances their mental barriers and healthy beliefs. By using gardening, parents can teach kids composting and recycling with ease. While young kids will still have to be supervised, it is ideal to give this guide a try and watch your kids engage in gardening while saving resources and nature.
The views expressed are that of the expert alone.
