Gardening Activities for Kids

Over the years, I’ve loved discovering simple gardening activities for kids!

I’m always specifically looking for ideas that will serve as a great addition to our homeschooling lifestyle.

As with any fun-looking learning activity, when I find one that sounds like it would be a good fit for our family, I try to make it happen.

Gardening with kids can be a lot of fun, and it doesn’t have to be complicated.

In fact, our family’s favorite gardening activities have actually been quite simple.

Gardening Activities for Kids

Not only do the ideas included in this post allow your kids to have fun and be creative.

They will also give them the opportunity to grow in their abilities to nurture and be responsible.

When kids are given the opportunity to care for a seed or plant from its inception to its place on the kitchen table – Wow, will they truly learn to appreciate the food they eat!

Now let’s head outside and explore some gardening activities for kids!

And yes, we’re definitely going to have a chance to play in some dirt – Here we go!

Grow Produce from Seeds

Start a seed garden with toilet paper or egg carton planters.

This could be a fun afternoon project for your kids or grandkids. 

Materials needed:

• Cardboard Egg Carton Box
• Potting Soil
• Scissors
• Spray Bottle for Water
• Seeds

Step-by-Step Instructions:

• Safety first! Be sure to supervise your kids when they are using scissors to cut the cardboard egg carton box in half. If you want to plant more seedlings you can keep the card intact.
• Fill the cups with the potting soil.
• Use a small stick (or finger) to create a small hole in the middle of each cup.
• Add a seed to each hole.
• Cover lightly with soil.
• Spray with water.
• Keep the box in a warm but well-lit area.
• Continue watering the soil as needed until the seedlings sprout.
• Transplant the seedlings into a pot/container or plant them directly in the garden outside.

Plant an Indoor or Outdoor Herb Garden

Plant herbs that grow fast! Specially choose to grow the ones that are most useful in your family’s kitchen.

Want to keep things simple? No worries!

You can keep your herb garden small and still enjoy this fun gardening project.

Regrow Vegetables from Scraps

You can always repurpose vegetable scraps in your kitchen.

It will be an interesting and exciting project to do with your kids.

It will also help create new vegetables from what would have normally ended in the garbage can.

Some of the easiest vegetables to regrow from scrap include celery, lettuce, ginger, garlic, onions, potatoes, carrots, and some herbs such as cilantro and basil.

Explore the World of Soil Composting

This activity is for kids who have expressed a real interest in gardening because while composting is engaging, it also takes time and requires commitment.

But what a great opportunity to learn how to grow healthy organic crops!

When doing this project with kids, start small.

You can get started using a mason jar or small container.

• Place soil into this jar.
• Add kitchen scraps.
• Include bits of newspaper.
• Remember to keep everything moist.
• Continue doing this until the jar is full and a large container is needed.

Get Busy Digging and Weeding

Dirt and kids – For many young gardeners, this is a natural combination!

If your children enjoy real-life sensory experiences such as this, they can get busy digging, weeding, and watering.

Be sure to provide them with any necessary gardening gear – always considering their safety as they’re working alongside you.

This is a great time to explain why gardening beds need weeding and digging and this may just be the time when your child or grandchild falls in love with gardening.

No matter what, time spent with you will be cherished for years to come.

Track Plant Growth and Development

This activity is perfect for all ages! Engaging and educational – a double win!

Encourage your young learner to record or journal the progress/development they see as their plant grows!

How fun to begin this when the seedings or young plants are first planted, tracking the progress until the time of harvesting.

This is a fantastic opportunity for kids to learn recording and note-taking skills. 

Harvest Fruits and Vegetables

This is an activity the kids will love! Each time you head to your backyard garden to harvest, be sure to take the kids with you!

There is an unexplained joy that comes with harvesting food you have grown in your garden.

You know the toil that went into it and if the kids helped grow the fruits and vegetables, the joy will be fulfilled TOGETHER!

Start a Sunflower Garden

Sunflowers brighten the farm in the summer. The brightly colored flowers are a gem in the garden because they attract pollinators and make the garden look lively.

Help your kids start a beautiful sunflower garden/house by planting these beautiful flowers.

Be sure to take lots of pictures along the way – sweet memories in the making!

“Keep your face to the sun and you cannot see the shadows – It’s what sunflowers do.”

– Helen Keller

Incorporate Seeds and Flowers into Arts and Crafts Activities

There are many creative games to play and craft activities your kids can do with seeds and flowers in the garden.

• Encourage your kids to mix different-colored flowers to create some flower art.
• Large seeds (such as sunflowers) can be painted or used as props for learning or solving mathematical problems. 
• Use a variety of seeds to create patterns of different kinds.
• Arrange larger seeds in a variety of different shapes – triangles, circles, squares, etc.

Create Bird Feeders

How best to attract birds and wildlife to your garden than by feeding and sheltering them?

Encourage your kids to build birdfeeders. Give them permission to be as creative as possible.

This is a great time to explain why birds are great pollinators and how they can benefit the garden.

Make Creative Hanging Baskets and Planters

There is no limit to how we can decorate around the house.

Using hanging boxes and planters is one way of keeping our patios, balconies, and other areas neat, beautiful, and well-utilized.

Planter boxes can be lined up along the driveway or on the patio. Invite the kids to creative decorate or paint them.

Show them what kind of flowers to plant. A good flower combination can make all the difference.  

Decorate Garden Pots

If you already have gardening pots you can take some time to paint them a new coat of paint with your kids.

Well-arranged and well-decorated pots and containers can give your garden a refreshing uplift.

Paint a Stepping Stone

Do your kids enjoy painting? Painting a stepping stone can create a fun addition to your own garden or provide kids with a special gift to present to grandparents.

More Garden Activities for Kids

• Our Favorite Kid-Friendly Rain Gauge
• Learning Resources Cross-Section Model of a Flower
• Grow-A-Maze Science Kit for Kids
• Organic Terrarium Grow Kit
• Grow and Glow Terrarium Kit
• Deluxe Herb Garden Kit
• Tickle Me Plant Seeds
• Bird Watching Books for Kids

Garden Books for Kids

This sweet stack of Garden Books for Kids has the power to teach!

Through the pages of great interactive books, kids can learn all kinds of things about plants.