Gardening is the perfect activity to do with your kids this summer. You will teach them responsibility and patience, as well as a curiosity for the outdoors they cannot gain elsewhere. A little dirt is no match for the lessons kids learn when they grow their own plants!

Here are some idea to get you started:

Grow from Seed

With a packet of seeds, you and your kids can give birth to a whole range of interesting flowers and veggies. Your child’s face will light up in amazement as he watches how sudden a seed turns into something green and magical!

• Sunflowers: Your kids will be wowed by how quickly they catch up to them in height. Keep track with a measuring tape.
• Beans: These fast growers can climb ladders, poles, or just about anything else in your garden. Great for picking and eating right off the vine too.
• Nasturtium: Pretty and edible, flowers and all. They also attract hummingbirds to your garden, a sure delight.
• Potato: These buried treasures make harvest time and digging in the dirt all the more fun.
• Pumpkins: Let your kids etch their names in young pumpkins.

Show and Tell
Take advantage of your children’s curiosity. Things you may take for granted, such as a flower opening up during the day, are magical to a child. They’ll also learn far more by being in the garden, using all of their senses!

Invite Friends Over
While gardening is often a relaxing activity for adults, kids will enjoy playing in the dirt with their friends. Take advantage of this by supplying them with the materials and instructions they need to make something beautiful in the garden.

Give them a Job
Your kids will feel a great sense of accomplishment when they see their hard work paying off. Start with a daily task of watering planters on your patio. This will demonstrate to the child that he or she can play a genuine role in making the world a more beautiful place!

Give them a Plot
A sense of ownership and control over something is very important to all of us. Starting when your kids are young, set aside a portion of the garden that they can call their own.

Show them How to Share
A garden takes on special meaning when it can be shared with others. Allow your kids to pick a bouquet of flowers. Show them how you plant a row of veggies and have her help you deliver the produce to a nearby food pantry.

Take Time to Play
Above all, take some time to enjoy being with your child in the garden. Proven to him that gardening is not just about weeding and watering, but that gardens are also about play and pleasure as well!

Log on to Kids Gardeningfor inspiring lesson plans for you and your kids to follow in the garden.