Encouraging children into the garden can be such a rewarding experience. Exploring the garden, playing with dirt, studying nature and getting creative can be a wonderful bonding exercise. Plus giving them their own plant/s to care for gives them responsibility and ownership.
For those who are looking at new ways of engaging your children in the garden, give photography a go. Gone are the days when we needed to worry about them using up a roll of film and having to pay for them to be developed before we could see their results. Here are the days of instant rewards and with the digital way of life, your child can take their photos and instantly be rewarded for their efforts. Whether the photographs are taken on a digital camera, smart phone or tablet, your child will get the enjoyment out of exploring the outdoors with purpose.
Take this as an opportunity to encourage them to look at the garden in new ways, from different angles and to look at the finer details of the plants or flowers, even to look at the insects they find along the way. You can let them take the images themselves or set them challenges along the way to help give them guidance.
Ensure it is a fun experience with the emphasis on enjoyment and discovery whilst developing a new area of creativity.
