Benefits of Local School Gardening Programme
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A short research to be conducted to understand the importance of a nature curriculum - Gardening in a local early childhood setting
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Benefits of Local School Gardening Programme
- 1. Examining Children’s Development in a Local Gardening Programme
- 2. Scope • Research purpose • Research questions • Discussion/synthesis of key literature • Methodology of data collection • Challenges
- 3. Research Purpose Background • Sensory experience • Authentic encounter • Outdoor activities are beneficial • Urbanization reduces outdoor activities This study aims to prove the value of the nature world in early childhood, such that stakeholders are aware and play a more active role in facilitating and ensuring the presence of nature as part of the children’s learning environment.
- 4. Research Question • Lack of local research decreases value of how outdoor activities such as a gardening benefits • Local gardening as part of early childhood programme • The study aims to establish a positive link between gardening activities and children’s development in a local gardening programme
- 5. Discussion of key literature Outdoor Environment – Nature Environment • “hands-on” and “minds-on” (Szczepanski, 2009) • Learn confidence, courage and how to communicate with their peers (Subramaniam, 2002) • Increase in the sense of wonder, imagination, creativity, observation skills, relationship skills and motivation for lifelong learning (Miller, 2007) • Improves physical, gross and finer motor skills that include balance, coordination and agility (Änggård, 2010) • Improves children’s cognitive growth (Pyle, 2002) • Able to feel for others, and for other living animals and plants (Chen & Monroe, 2010) 5
- 6. Discussion of key literature Nature Environment - Gardening • Positive impact of outdoor gardening in relation to higher order cognitive skills (Rahm, 2002 and Waliczek et al., 2003) • Reported the impacts of garden-based learning (Rahm, 2002 and Waliczek et al., 2003) • Improved standardized academic achievement • Reduced discipline issues and ease of classroom management • Students more attentive and motivated in class learning • Students are proud of their achievements and develop sense of ownership • Cross curricular learning process (Miller, 2007) • An avenue of emotional development, enhance teamwork among students (Kwack and Relf, 2002) • Powerful influence in re-shaping school culture (Thorp & Townsend, 2001) 6
- 7. Methodology– Theorectical Framework “Look-Move-Build-Sketch” • “Look” encourages children to look carefully into details of the objects • “Move” urges bodily movements among children to mimic movements • “Build” enables children to really work with materials so that their learning is sensorial and physical • “Sketch” captures children’s records of what they had experienced in a two-dimensional form
- 8. Methodology– Set of skills for reference • Visual-spatial skills, language/literacy, science, mathematics, kinaesthetic/body awareness, social/interpersonal and intrapersonal skills • Aligned to the centre’s curriculum approach of Multiple Intelligences
- 9. Methodology– Analysis of observations • The analysis of the teachers’ nature notes, coupled with interviews will have themes as follow: • (1) Knowledge children are communicating, • (2) emotions children are conveying and • (3) the skills children are developing • Child’s artworks
- 10. Methodology – Research Approach • Consent to be given by Centre Supervisor, Parents and Children • School’s curriculum is designed with the principle of multiple intelligences • Outdoor environment – gardening plots in collaboration with the community • 5 children between 5-6 years old • Observations to be done in accordance to template mentioned above - maximum 1 hour for each child 10
- 11. Challenges • Gardening Plot is a shared space • Small scale : case study of one school • Garden is not designed for “ Learning-informed design” 11
- 12. My Thoughts • Start small, by influencing the teachers • Prove the value of gardening to the various stakeholders 12 the end Thank you
- 13. References • Änggård, E. (2010). Making use of “nature” in an outdoor preschool: Classroom, home and fairyland. Children Youth and Environments, 20(1), 4-25. • Blair, D. (2009). The child in the garden: An evaluative review of the benefits of school gardening. The Journal of Environmental Education, 40(2), 15-38. • Cheng, J. C. H., & Monroe, M. C. (2012). Connection to Nature Children’s Affective Attitude Toward Nature. Environment and Behavior, 44(1), 31-49. 13 • Fjørtoft, I. (2001). The natural environment as a playground for children: The impact of outdoor play activities in pre-primary school children. Early childhood education journal, 29(2), 111-117. • Gardner, H. (2004). The unschooled mind. New York, NY: Basic Books. • Kong, L. (2000). Nature’s dangers, nature’s pleasures: Urban children and the natural world. In S. L. Holloway &G. Valentine (Eds.), Children’s geographies: Playing, living,learning (pp. 257–271). London: Routledge.
- 14. References 14 • Subramaniam, A. (2002). Garden-based learning in basic education: A historical review. Monograph, Centre for Youth Development, University of California. 12pp. • Thorp, L., & Townsend, C. (2001, December). Agricultural education in an elementary school: An ethnographic study of a school garden. In Proceedings of the 28th Annual National Agricultural Education Research Conference in New Orleans, LA (pp. 347-360). • Wake, S. J. (2007). Designed for Learning: Applying “Learning- Informed Design” for Children's Gardens. Applied Environmental Education and Communication, 6(1), 31-38. • Kwack, H. R., & Relf, P. D. (2002). Current Status of Human Issues in Horticulture in Korea. HortTechnology, 12(3), 415-419. • Miller, D. L. (2007). The seeds of learning: young children develop important skills through their gardening activities at a midwestern early education program. Applied Environmental Education and Communication, 6(1), 49-66. • Pyle, R. M. (2002). Eden in a vacant lot: Special places, species, and kids in the neighborhood of life. Children and nature: Psychological, sociocultural, and evolutionary investigations, 305-327.
Notes de l'éditeur
- The pedagogy based on sensory experience enables learning to have a deeper approach through direct physical contact with the natural and cultural phenomena This authentic encounter is an important source of motivation for a meaningful and creative learning process (Szczepanski, 2008). The outdoor times provide good opportunities for physical developments in children, and allow an environment where children can bring meaning and express what they know in a very different way than they could in a traditional classroom setting (Miller, 2007) The outdoor times provide good opportunities for physical developments in children, and allow an environment where children can bring meaning and express what they know in a very different way than they could in a traditional classroom setting (Miller, 2007) to prove the value of the nature world in early childhood, such that stakeholders are aware and play a more active role in facilitating and ensuring the presence of nature as part of the children’s learning environment. A local approach providing relevance and developmentally appropriate learning experience requires further study to convince the various stakeholders of the importance of outdoor activities - a nature environment for children.
- The lack of research locally on the impacts of a nature-centric early childhood programme on children development decreases the value of how gardening activities could have a positive influence on children’s development In this study, we shall look at local gardening as an early childhood programme, and examine the different children’s development that relate with it. The programme used was to allow children with multi-sensory experiential learning process through their interaction with nature. The study aims to establish a positive link between gardening activities and children’s development in a local gardening programme.
- The process of gaining knowledge in outdoor environments is guided by “hands-on” and “minds-on” lessons that are related to Outdoor Education (Szczepanski, 2009) Children learn confidence, courage and how to communicate with their peers as they discover the amazing nature together. Rousseau asserted the importance of nature in education, stating that nature was the children’s greatest teacher and that “his knowledge of the natural world serves as a foundation for his later learning” (Subramaniam, 2002) The benefits of children having positive experiences with nature would include an increase in the sense of wonder, imagination, creativity, observation skills, relationship skills and motivation for lifelong learning (Miller, 2007) It was thought that children are to grow up in nature to avoid the harmful effects of a modern society (Änggård, 2010). These effects can be due to different lifestyle, technology advances and government educational policies which may limit children developments. In comparison, children who frequently play in natural environments tend to show much improved physical gross and finer motor skills that include balance, coordination and agility The exposure to natural environments also improves children’s cognitive growth by improving their awareness, reasoning and observational skills (Pyle, 2002) In addition, children who appreciate nature, are able to feel for others, and for other living animals and plants, as well as develop responsibility towards nature which in turn improves the children’s physical and mental well being (Chen & Monroe, 2010).
- It is also noted that important literacy and numeracy learning, skill development, personal growth and environmental awareness are also happening at preschoolers’ level in the garden. Miller’s study also suggested a presence of cross-curricular learning process whereby early years children learned basic mathematics, science and language principles through their authentic hands-on gardening experience. In Miller’s study, the link to key skill and learning developments to early education was established in a gardening programme. Children found themselves in situations that provide them occasions to develop a sense of wonder about the world, and be amazed daily with new discoveries. It has also been found that gardening introduces young children to the world they live in and assists them in understanding the role they play in protecting their environment (Miller, 2007). Furthermore, school gardening lessons, do not apply only for traditional education purpose in academics, it is used to provide an avenue of emotional development, enhance teamwork among students and thus providing a good environment for learning (Kwack and Relf, 2002). Gardening allows children to look at their inner feelings and their thoughts, both within themselves and among others. These assist them in their awareness of similarities and differences when comparing themselves with their peers. It is also found that a successful gardening programme is a powerful influence in re-shaping school culture in terms of cultural transformation, sustaining hope, growth and community. The garden links children to the organizing basis of experience and enables children and teachers to feel more distinctively present in their lives and work (Thorp & Townsend, 2001)
- . “Look” encourages children to look carefully into details of the objects e.g. growing bean sprout in a transparent container which is able to show the seed, roots, leaves and stems. “Move” urges bodily movements among children to mimic movements like the objects they observed in order to better understand them. Lesson plans will include music and movement that encourage movements for instance, “Flowers growing Song” whereby children will move their bodies, hands, and legs to imitate how a plant grows, sung to the tune of the popular “The Wheels on the Bus”. “Build” enables children to really work with materials so that their learning is sensorial and physical, for example, growing pumpkin and building trellis for its growth or creating paper strip sculpture, manipulating pipe cleaners for representation of what they see. “Sketch” captures children’s records of what they had experienced in a two-dimensional form (e.g. drawing what they see, writing to describe, colouring to better depict their knowledge—leaves can be yellow and green besides coming in various shapes and sizes).
- . “Look” encourages children to look carefully into details of the objects e.g. growing bean sprout in a transparent container which is able to show the seed, roots, leaves and stems. “Move” urges bodily movements among children to mimic movements like the objects they observed in order to better understand them. Lesson plans will include music and movement that encourage movements for instance, “Flowers growing Song” whereby children will move their bodies, hands, and legs to imitate how a plant grows, sung to the tune of the popular “The Wheels on the Bus”. “Build” enables children to really work with materials so that their learning is sensorial and physical, for example, growing pumpkin and building trellis for its growth or creating paper strip sculpture, manipulating pipe cleaners for representation of what they see. “Sketch” captures children’s records of what they had experienced in a two-dimensional form (e.g. drawing what they see, writing to describe, colouring to better depict their knowledge—leaves can be yellow and green besides coming in various shapes and sizes).
- The knowledge of the children is mainly depicted in their drawings (t Teachers’ nature notes template is categorized by the key skills detailed in Table 1, and observations are mainly done in accordance with these skills. Children’s artwork came mainly in the form of drawings (with paint, colour pencils and crayons or plain sketching). Artwork using various forms are also encouraged e.g. clay work and craft work). Through their artworks) and verbal communication.