“Some are drawn to the overall natural setting,
some to the food, some to the compost, some to the bugs, some to the worms
-- there’s something for everyone.”
Kids help with planting, harvesting and general garden maintenance. The opportunities
for learning are endless and include experiences which cannot be replicated
in a classroom.
“The compost is an interesting case study, because kids will react negatively
to the smell of the active bin, and then when they smell the finished compost
up close, they all of a sudden “get it”, that composting is a
process that starts stinky but ends up as sweet-smelling soil,” explains
Harrison. “If they tried to study it on paper without the use of their
senses to guide them, most would lose interest and not retain any of the science.”
It’s important for kids to get their hands dirty insists Harrison. Not
only because they love it, but because they need it. “Urban children
are suffering from a lack of access to the natural world and the processes
that support human life, including growing food,” believes Harrison.
“Studies are beginning to show what is termed ‘nature-deficit
disorder,’ which occurs when children are not engaged in the observation
of subtle and delicate phenomena such as that found in nature and are overexposed
to television, video games, and computers.”
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