Spring has arrived which means flowers are blooming, the grass is greener, and bees are buzzing! And with school almost out and summer right around the corner, it’s the perfect time for daycares, summer camps, and youth centers to start planning outdoor activities that encourage kids to get outside and explore the world around them. What better way to do this than by creating a STEAM education garden!
STEAM education gardens provide excellent learning opportunities that last past the spring, throughout the summer, and well into the fall. Since gardening is a hands-on activity, it engages all of the senses and is a great way to introduce basic STEAM principles to young learners. With this activity, little gardeners not only learn about the plant world, but they also develop an appreciation for the beauty of nature while instilling a lifelong skill. And when children garden together they learn about collaboration, creativity, and mindfulness all while growing their green thumbs.
Below are just a few learning ideas that a STEAM education garden can provide. The possibilities are endless!
Science = Early learners can learn the different parts of a flower or determine the right amount of water and sunlight to help seeds sprout.
Technology = Introduce preschoolers to the different names of garden tools and how each one is used.
Engineering = Involve young gardeners in the overall design process and layout for a successful garden.
Art = After their vegetables have grown and their flowers have bloomed, children can draw or paint a picture of their plant, or create a flower arrangement.
Math = Gardening tools, like a transplant trowel, are great ways to introduce basic math and measurement skills to early learners.
Equip Young Gardeners with the Best Tools Available to Have a Successful Crop!
Gardeners-on-the-Go
The Mobile Garden Center by Whitney Brothers makes transporting gardening tools, supplies, and materials a snap. Perfect for learning about the plant world, this garden center provides countless STEM applications, encourages collaboration between students, and has 28 included clear plastic planting containers to conduct several simultaneous experiments! The four non-marking rolling casters make it light and easy for little hands to push around or store when not in use.
Keep Your Education Garden Organized
The Activity Center by Wood Designs provides a centralized work, play, and storage area for all your gardening tools and supplies. Perfect for preschoolers through kindergarteners, this early learning station features a large tabletop that is great for any nature and STEM-based activities! And it comes with several storage options including four removable double-sided drawers and one large removable crate for all of your garden organization needs.
Encourage Dramatic and Creative Play while Gardening
Wood Designs Outdoor Garden Center features a trellis roof and flower containers. This play center allows your students to get creative with their gardening and outdoor STEAM activities and is the perfect solution to help young imaginations blossom. Flowers grown here can be used later to inspire young artists to create a still life painting or practice their skills at flower arranging.
Watch it Grow
Get your plants garden-ready with Diversified Woodcrafts Hydroponics Growing Center. The center is the perfect way to demonstrate to young gardeners about the life-cycle of a plant in a soil-less growing environment. Children can also learn about food production, nutrition, and basic needs of a plant. Once the plants are mature, young gardeners can transplant them into their outdoor garden for continued growth, learning, and harvesting.
Worthington Direct has everything you need to help you kick-start your preschool STEAM Education Garden. One of our friendly associates will be glad to help you choose the best activity centers to get you growing, so contact us today for more information.
Post image by Sandie Clarke via Unsplash.com
