Grow Up Great
Note: This is an ongoing project and will require regular watering and weeding to maintain the garden.
Planting and caring for a garden can be a richly rewarding outdoor experience for children. Just by being outside, children’s senses are awakened as they see, smell, touch, and hear the natural environment around them. The exposure to Earth, water, air, and other living things paves the way for children to appreciate and learn from nature.
In planting and watching food grow, children learn that many of our foods come from the Earth, even though we purchase them from the grocery store. Children learn how important water is for plant growth and how seeds grow and change. Children will discover how all living things have the same basic needs—food, water, air, and a safe place to live.
Planting and caring for a garden can be a richly rewarding outdoor experience for children. Just by being outside, children’s senses are awakened as they see, smell, touch, and hear the natural environment around them. The exposure to Earth, water, air, and other living things paves the way for children to appreciate and learn from nature.
These lessons are aligned with the Common Core State Standards ("CCSS"). The CCSS provide a consistent, clear understanding of the concepts and skills children are expected to learn and guide teachers to provide their students with opportunities to gain these important skills and foundational knowledge.[2]
While we believe that the books and resources recommended may be of value to you, keep in mind that these are suggestions only and you must do your own due diligence to determine whether the materials are appropriate and suitable for your use. PNC has no sponsorship or endorsement agreement with the authors or publishers of the materials listed.
There are currently no Common Core Standards for pre-k, but these lessons are aligned as closely as possible to capture the requirements and meet the goals of Common Core Standards. However, these lessons were neither reviewed or approved by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices or the Council of Chief State School Officers, which together are the owners and developers of the Common Core State Standards.
Read a summary of privacy rights for California residents which outlines the types of information we collect, and how and why we use that information.