Learning & Regulating Through Gardening
Paige Etheridge, COTA/L
When you look at it through an Occupational Therapy lens, gardening isn’t just a hobby; it’s a full-body, multi-sensory workout. This year in Middle School, we are currently using our outdoor garden during spring electives to teach students the many ways gardening can help our brains learn and keep our bodies regulated. Students will be able to use our outdoor garden space to grow a variety of foods and herbs and watch them grow over the course of the next couple of months.
But when we garden, we get so much more than just a variety of foods and herbs. Gardening is an extremely beneficial tool to incorporate real-life math skills and science concepts with hands-on learning and sensory benefits. Learn more about the incredible lessons that come with gardening below and how you can bring all of this home for your Complex Learner!
Math Skills
Gardening provides a fun and meaningful way for students to apply math skills in real-life situations. The first way to support math skills is through budgeting. Students can practice managing money by comparing the costs of seeds versus starter plants and making spending decisions. The next steps would be measuring a space for the garden beds. This helps them explore area and perimeter as they figure out how big their garden beds should be/are, and how many plants can fit. They can also practice working on volume when calculating how much soil or mulch is required to fill a raised bed. In addition, students can collect and track data by measuring plant growth each week and graphing their results, helping them build skills in data analysis and visualization. These hands-on experiences make math more engaging and help students see its purpose in everyday life.
Executive Functioning
Gardening is also a wonderful way to build executive functioning skills. As students decide what to plant and when, they practice planning and prioritizing while using their working memory to keep track of steps and timelines. Gardening also supports task initiation, as children learn to break down larger jobs—like clearing a garden bed—into smaller, manageable steps they can begin and complete. Along the way, students will strengthen their problem-solving skills and cognitive flexibility by adapting to challenges, such as figuring out what to do if bugs eat their plants or if something doesn’t grow as expected. These real-life experiences help students develop the thinking skills they need to stay organized, start tasks, and adjust their approach when needed.
Scientific Concepts
Gardening can also be a hands-on way for students to explore important science concepts. As they plant, care for, and observe their gardens, children learn about life cycles by seeing how plants grow from seeds into mature plants that can produce new seeds. They also begin to understand photosynthesis by observing how plants need sunlight, water, and air to grow and stay healthy. Additionally, if you add composting to the mix, this can give children a way to explore other science concepts like decomposition, and environmental responsibility while actively observing change over time. It also supports their garden by creating nutrient-rich soil, helping kids see the direct connection between caring for the earth and growing healthy plants. Through these real-life experiences, students can better grasp how plants make their own food using sunlight and how each stage of growth is connected.
Sensory Benefits
Beyond the academic benefits, gardening can also provide powerful sensory grounding experiences—feeling the soil, smelling fresh herbs, and spending time in the quiet of nature can help lower stress levels and reduce anxiety. It also introduces the “wait” game, teaching children patience and delayed gratification as they learn that things like tomatoes take time to grow. This can also help students have a sense of pride in their work from planting it, to watching it grow, and then getting to taste the product of their hard work. Tasks like digging, planting, and carrying watering cans give students “heavy work,” also known as proprioceptive input, which helps them feel more grounded, regulated, and calm. Additionally, herbs like chamomile, mint, and lemon balm are easy to grow and can be used to make calming teas that support relaxation and self-regulation. Involving children in growing and preparing these herbs helps them build routines around mindfulness while connecting the garden to their own well-being.
Getting Started
Getting started with gardening at home doesn’t have to be complicated or require a lot of space. Start small – even a single pot of herbs on a windowsill can be a great learning experience. The key is to make it manageable and enjoyable. Giving your child ownership is especially important; let them choose one “experimental” plant to care for, whether it’s a vegetable, flower, or something unique. This helps build excitement, responsibility, and curiosity as they take the lead in caring for something that’s theirs. Over time, these small, simple experiences can grow into meaningful opportunities for learning and confidence.
When we step back and look at the big picture, gardening is about so much more than growing vegetables—it’s about growing capable, confident, and calm learners who are building real-world skills in math, science, and problem-solving. These experiences help children develop patience, responsibility, and a deeper connection to their learning. We would love to see this learning continue at home, so please feel free to share photos of your child’s gardening projects with us. It’s a wonderful way to celebrate their hard work and inspire others in our Wolf community!
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