At Thorpe Acre Infant School, Mrs Taylor runs our weekly gardening club. The school garden offers a place to enrich teaching efforts with powerful hands-on experiences that make learning come alive.

In our school garden, the children plant, grow and care for the following fruit and vegetables:

• Tomatoes
• Potatoes
• Peas
• Onions 
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Blackberries
• Squash

There are lots of positive impacts of having a school gardening club. It provides opportunities for hands-on learning, observation and experimentation across the curriculum. Gardens help get students excited about fruits and vegetables and provide countless opportunities to experience and try the foods they are growing. Gardening offers students ample opportunities to walk, lift, carry, dig, plant, and rake, as well as practice balance and dexterity, all while participating in an enjoyable and engaging activity. 

Our school garden offers the children a multi-faceted approach to mental health enhancement, cultivating an environment that promotes stress relief, focus, physical activity, responsibility, social interaction and mindfulness. In our fast-paced, screen-dominated world, gardens provide a rare sanctuary for mental wellness.  Simple acts of planting, watering, and tending to a garden can be profoundly therapeutic, teaching patience, fostering a sense of achievement. Engagement in gardening activities has been shown to promote emotional and mental well-being in children. 

RHS Campaign for School Gardening works with schools and groups to help children and young people to experience the power of plants. Through free resources, projects and guidance, our work has shown that the direct benefits of gardening are wide ranging, click on the link for more details: RHS School Gardening

Awards