Lessons Learned During Yard Work

Really?

I have been reading Last Child in the Woods this week.  And while I am skeptical that being among nature will cure ADHD, I agree anecdotally regular and sustained interactions in a green space, lowers our anxiety, improves our sustained attention, and seems to decrease irritability and frustration, the longer our family is out in nature; hence the frequent camping trips and weekly hikes, and long weekends spent gardening.

Last night, I read a chapter on remedial green therapy and its effect on improving sustained attention. Today, I watched it play out before my eyes, as my kids (ages 4 to 13) and I weeded the flower beds and tended the roses.  As we entered the garden, the older kids were bickering and complaining loudly.  All I could think was, “this is going to be a very long day…. ”  As the morning progressed, the tone changed.  Their attention shifted from just attending to their assigned task and complaining about it, to fascination with the world around them.  Amongst the roses, a  myriad of life lessons were taught and reinforced. Check out the list of comments and discussion the kids had, as they weeded and collected clippings… There is more to the back yard, than us parents realize…

Ahh, mom do we have to?

Mom this is sooo boring.

Plant Identification: 

What do you want me to weed?

Is this a weed?

Zoological Studies

Wow, did you see that centipede?

Hee, hee- look at this rolly polly.

I see a snake skin!

What kind of egg is this? Is it a quail egg or a duck egg? Can it still hatch?

Is there a whole city of bugs under the sidewalk?

Botany

Mom, what is the fastest growing flower?

Are there prickers on these?

Why do we have to cut all the old blooms off?

Persistance

Look how sweaty I am.

This is taking a long time.

History and Anthropology

Did the Indians ever use rose thorns as weapons?

If we dig, do you think we will find pioneer artifacts (we live in Utah)?

More Zoology

Where do box elder bugs come from?

Check out the pregnant spider. She has an egg sac.

Problem Solving/ Frustration Management

Can I do the watering and someone else weed for a while?

Hey, can we split the set of leather gloves? You wear the left and I’ll wear the right.

If I get you the bucket, will you gather those rose clippings, while I bring around the big trashcan?

Confidence/ Self-Reliance/Resiliency

Hey Dad, come see what we did today.

We worked really hard.

Doesn’t it look nice?

I think we parents believe we are simplifying our lives by just hiring someone else to do the yard work. I fear in doing so, we are complicating it for both them and us- by robbing our kids of opportunities to be outside and improve their attention and lower their anxiety, by robbing them of opportunities to explore and ask questions, and by robbing them of opportunities to build resiliency, and self confidence in their abilities to do for themselves.  After hire the lawn guy, we then spend more energy searching and arranging alternative opportunities for our kids to explore, be outside, build resiliency and learn emotional management skills- all that could have been simply learned in the backyard.  Think about that the next time you reach for your checkbook.  What could my kids learn from the experience I am about to pay someone else to complete?

 

Other Posts You Might Enjoy:

My ADD Tent: 7 Benefits of Camping in the Mud
Spring Cleaning Tasks Kids Can Really Do- Honest!