Whether your garden is on a city windowsill or in a big backyard getting kids involved in tending to plants can be a powerful teaching tool for subjects like science，math and reading.Here's how your garden can grow responsibility，kindness and other values in your kids.
    Being patient is hard for many children，but it can be important for their future.It can also help kids stay calm in stressful situations.You know good stuff comes at the end of a growing season — like yummy fruit or pretty flowers — kids have to wait for it.For instance a carrot seed can take between 70 and 80 days to mature （成熟）.When kids develop a garden，for longer-growth plants they can create a garden journal to record the progress of their seedling with words drawings or photos.
    Studies suggest that kindness can help kids develop empathy （同理心）. "Being kind helps children develop positive relationships，" scientists say. "It can also help them manage feelings of anxiety and depression." When kids realize that a garden is full of living things that need their help to grow，they would like to pay more attention to caring about them.Let kids plant garden helpers like thyme and tansy，which both keep away bad bugs.Kids can also release good ladybugs which eat aphids （蚜蟲） on plants like roses.
    Children who see themselves as more responsible often feel better about themselves.And learning to take responsibility for their choices teaches kids how to choose between right and wrong.Looking after any kind of garden — even a small window box — need constant （不斷的） hard work to make sure that the plants grow well.Allow kids to be in charge of a single container or a small part of a bigger garden for which they're totally responsible.

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patience

patience

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a garden journal

a garden journal

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positive relationships

positive relationships

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protect

protect

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working hard

working hard