Mara Walters

Spending time in nature has a multitude of established benefits yet is a diminishing trend among children in the modern world. Due to the positive connection between the natural world and human health, the growing disconnect can be viewed as reason for concern. School gardens, a trend currently on the rise nationwide, pose a potential solution because of the positive effects they have on children’s connection to nature and overall health and wellbeing. This research study examines a school garden at a Title I school in eastern North Carolina and its social-emotional effects on elementary school students. The effects of the garden experience were examined through analysis of the voices of both students and teachers. Students’ and teachers’ perceptions of the school garden were analyzed along with student written reflections. Data collection included interviews with K-5 teachers (n=8), K-5 students responses to journal prompts (n=46), and semi-structured interviews with students (n=20) about garden experiences, as well as direct observations within the garden. Social-emotional learning (SEL), or the development of social-emotional competence, plays an important role in early childhood development and is the framework used to analyze both teacher and student data from the school garden. Results indicated that school gardens are sites for promoting SEL and student happiness, ultimately fostering positive youth development (PYD). This provides support for school garden programs to be implemented in the future as potential health and development promotion tools.