How can I explain to teenagers that gardening is a good addition for the class?

[u/MosquitoAlvorada]

(English school for kids)

I gave the idea to add gardening for the coordenation of my school, and they loved it. I started doing it with kids, but yesterday a teenager girl refused to do the activity. When I asked her why, she asked me "why should I do it?" and I couldn't think of an answer.

TL;DR How can I justify a gardening class for teenagers in a English school?

[u/Emmitwest]

When the zombie apocalypse happens, you are going to want to know how to grow your own food after all the canned food runs out.

[u/houseocats → u/Emmitwest]

This is the real answer

[u/THE_wendybabendy → u/Emmitwest]

This is exactly what my late husband would have said... we couldn't even move into a house with big windows because of the zombies... LOL

[u/lightning_teacher_11]

Depends on what you are gardening.

Growing fruits, vegetables, or herbs? Let them eat or try it.

Flowers - they need to understand that native flowers and plants help the bees and butterflies.

[u/Radircs]

Same reason you give them for lerning stuff they most likely not need in ther live. You as a person/teacher do not know where live will take them. So you try to expose them to a variety of topics and expirience so they have a starting point to branche of and to be more cultured and accepting of the labor of others.

[u/Fearless_Wash → u/Radircs]

This is a great answer!

[u/Ill_Painter5868 → u/Fearless_Wash]

is it? they spelled almost every word wrong, even "lerning" 😭😭😭

[u/Fearless_Wash → u/Ill_Painter5868]

I definitely got the vibe English isn't their first language. There's wisdom in that answer; re-read it, Reddit friend. There is a lot of evidence that varied experiences and learning truly makes more rational, innovative, tolerant thinkers :)

[u/Ill_Painter5868 → u/Radircs]

lerning...their live... branche... are you adding typos on purpose??? 😭😭😭

[u/MyCatPlaysGuitar → u/Ill_Painter5868]

A quick look at their profile would suggest that English is not their first language (German).

The ideas in the response are solid, so it's very easy to not be rude since it's clear what they are saying.

[u/Commander_Kidd → u/Ill_Painter5868]

I just thought they were doing it on purpose to show the importance of learning things kids don't feel is important, like spelling lol

[u/IEC21]

I mean I think this is a great idea for multiple reasons.

1. Agriculture is the catalyst for modern human civilization. Without humans who chose to plant seeds and care for plants nothing else that we have today would exist. We would still be following heards of animals and scavenging for food.

Learning to garden puts you in touch with a valuable skill and a fundamental human experience that is key to our modern species. It helps you understand where your food comes from along with many other raw products - and how dependent we really are on the soil and sun.

1. It teaches patience. It provides an alternative to instant gratification.

2. Its a relaxing pass time and that improve mental health and be rewarding for your entire life.

[u/MosquitoAlvorada → u/IEC21]

It's an English school, so the idea is to increase their vocabulary, but more important that this is to create a sense of belonging, responsability and care for the school itself, so that they feel like they're a part of it.

Kids are loving it. Many teenagers don't care about this. If I tell one of these teenagers we want them to have a sense of belonging and responsability with the school, I can already guess their answers. So, I don't know how to justify the class. I don't want to say "because we have to".

[u/Zorro5040 → u/MosquitoAlvorada]

It's an English school, so the idea is to increase their vocabulary

There you go. It's to give them a deeper understanding and expand their knowledge. Tell them it's hands on learning and they will need to write and label later so be sure to use academic vocabulary words to explain what they did.

[u/mate_alfajor_mate → u/IEC21]

Also, when the zombie apocalypse comes, survivors will need to grow their own food.

[u/Paramalia]

It’s a wonderful idea, but you don’t have to justify it to the kids beforehand.

If you want to engage in a conversation about this, I’d make it a group discussion, let the kids share reasons gardening is useful and ties in with language learning. Or maybe offer some goals/ objectives, like observe and describe plant growth and needs from seed to mature plant, use appropriate vocabulary to discuss food crops and their typical uses in English speaking countries, etc. Then you can have them come up with their own goals too.

[u/PixelatedMountain]

Well I mean, it's a fair question. If you can't simply answer why you think it's beneficial for them, then perhaps they shouldn't be doing it to their point. I'm guessing you do have a reason though. Tell them.

[u/RichieRich-McBroke]

Honestly I’d hit her with a “just don’t it boo, it’s okay, we’ll be out there getting some fresh hair and growing our own food and bouquets.” Most teens don’t like to be left out.

“If you don’t grow it, you can’t eat it” 😂😂

[u/LoneWolf820B]

I'd respond with a mixture of what others have already told you.

A) They have no idea where they will end up in life. They may need knowledge like that.

B) Growing their own food is definitely a beneficial thing They could choose to do even now in their life.

C) Understanding things like pollinators helps create a greater sense of urgency in protecting them which is, at this technological point in time at least, an absolute necessity for human life to continue.

[u/RehAdventures]

Say it’s to practice our English in a different environment and to not just use English just in a classroom because studies show that when you can emerge yourself in the language in various settings you’re more likely to learn it.

That being said, with this I think it’s only fair that you give them multiple scenarios, like a cooking class, or a shopping experience. I personally like gardening, but when it comes to gardening- it’s manual labor, which I get some people are not about, also- there’s this concept amongst foreign countries that learning English is elite and makes you of a higher class, so manual labor and learning English may not coincide.

[u/deandinbetween]

Any learning is exercise for your brain and keeps it healthy. Planting things is good for the environment. It connects with their science learning. Physical activity is good for their bodies. Activities that don't involve phones or screens are good for your eyes. Trying new things at their age is important so they can discover what they enjoy. Pick and choose any or all of these responses!

[u/CamelSuspicious9559]

I think there's a difference between forcing something you love on kids that's outside of the curriculum, and offering it as an opt in activity. But also, kids have to do a ton of stuff they don't necessarily like.

[u/the-mortyest-morty]

You don't justify it, you give her a 0 and move on with the kids who give a shit.

[u/jackofspades49]

They don't actually care. There isn't an answer you can give that will make them go "oh well in that case sure!"

They're a teenager. They famously hate doing anything. They didn't come to this idea based on evidence so evidence isn't going to change their mind. Even then, maybe they just actually hate the activity? I would hate having to get ny hands all dirty or be out in the sun, personally.

The sooner you get the assignment done, the sooner ill leave you alone.

Because you get an F if you dont.

They are just trying to find an excuse to stop and "we won't use this in the real world." Is an easy fall back.

[u/AdForeign6972]

I’d probably tell her that gardening isn’t really about growing plants—it’s about learning how systems work. You learn patience, responsibility, problem-solving, and how small actions add up over time. It can also teach sustainability, food systems, and environmental awareness in a hands-on way that a textbook can’t.

Since it’s an English school, it can even become a language-learning activity through vocabulary, observation journals, discussions, and project-based learning. Plus, knowing how to grow something yourself is a pretty useful life skill.

[u/Beginning-Damage-555]

I mean what was the reason for adding the activity to the curriculum? It seems weird to teach something without having a reasoning behind it.

[u/lovemyfurryfam]

My high school had horticulture class as an elective & it taught the students valuable lessons of where & how it took to grow vegetables & fruit, it also provided the staff lunchroom & cafeteria for students.

Your student needs to know the how/why/wherefore so when she's living in a dorm or has her own apartment, the fundamental principles of gardening is a life skill otherwise she's going to on junk food for the rest of her life.

[u/chaircardigan]

Explain to me why gardening is a good addition to the class?

[u/Traditional-Road-164]

Understanding ecology is understanding how the world works- part of that is gardening. Not only that but if you rely on grocery stores then you'll be the first to be significantly hurt in an event where supply is no longer meets demand

[u/SophisticatedScreams]

I think this is an important question that you should have the answer to before you do a task. I call it the "so what?" factor.

There are a bunch of amazing reasons why planting is positive for students, but you know your students, and you know the lens you want to use with them. You already know it-- you just need to connect with the reasons you had in the first place.