A Birthday Garden
We celebrated our child’s birthday with her friends last weekend. At every holiday, inevitably someone asks a child what gift she is wishing for. It’s times like that’s where it becomes abundantly clear that we don’t watch kids TV. My child has no idea what toy she would like; even the concept of directing a purchase is still a bit new.
So, when the inevitable question came during the party, the Kiddo took a moment and thought hard. “Berries,” she said. “Strawberries, blackberries and blueberries.”
It would have been easy enough to go buy them (imported) at the grocery store. And, likely I will do just that. But, I also ordered her the plants for her own “teaching” garden. Perhaps not the usual gift for a three-year-old, but I have a feeling she will love it. She already helps water and plant herbs. This season, we will grow plants from seeds indoors as well.
Teaching gardens are one of the more innovative approaches to hands-on learning and getting kids to embrace real foods again. Personally, I think it would be great if such a tool were a mandatory part of public education, just like PE. But, waiting for schools to catch up and do something innovative in a “No Child Left Behind” system could be a long wait. The teaching garden will have to be our backyard.
Children today have a disconnect as to where their food comes from. For many kids, their favorite food comes from a drive-through. Because our food travels so many miles, and often hardly resembles the actual plants and/or animals from which it came, it's no wonder that kids have no concept of agriculture, let alone the environmental impacts of industrial agriculture. 