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Essay / The benefits of outdoor gardening in kindergarten...
The name of my project is gardening which involves planting sunflowers. I chose this project because my kindergarten's outdoor space is limited. This project involved 5 year old children. The process of growing this sunflower took about two months. The project achieved its objective. The main objective of this project was to introduce children to the outdoor environment. Children gain many benefits from outdoor learning. Being outdoors allows them to move around without the many restrictions of being indoors (Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), 2014). Gardening is a suitable project to do as an outdoor game. The children were able to freely experience the outdoor environment. The outdoors is a natural place for children to be and play and there is a freedom associated with it. Bilton (2010:4) states that the outdoors is a natural environment for children and that there is a freedom associated with space that cannot be replicated indoors. As in this project, I observed that children freely engage and experience the outside environment rather than inside the classroom. The outdoors stimulates and excites children of all ages by allowing them to explore and discover fascinating worlds and rich experience offerings in the natural worlds. The sustainability of the project relies on the durability of the material. The materials I used for my project were flower pots, potting soil, sunflower seeds, a trowel, a wheelbarrow, watering buckets, and gloves. All the equipment was child sized. The materials consist of child-safe plastic. The materials are also high quality products. I explained my project to the children's parents and they supported me by donating the materials...... middle of paper ......r to the parents. Parents were able to clearly see and observe their child's development. This will make them feel more responsible for the child's progress and feel satisfied with their development. Parents also have the opportunity to work with their child and create a garden at home. In short, play forms the basis of learning in a child's world and opens the door to a world of learning opportunities. Gardening with children is a wonderful way to engage them with nature. Through this opportunity for joyful outdoor play, the garden encourages children's rights. As stewards of the land, working alongside their peers and adults, Kindergarten children build a sustainable future for themselves and their communities. This game world provides children with many opportunities to learn about themselves, others and the environment in which they live..