From nothing, something. It’s the original miracle; the big miracle, which echoes wherever one and one make three.
As a parent, that miracle now resonates through you. What a cruel trick of nature that you must be apart from them at times. What a relief that you can place them in the care of Eden Prairie Montessori, where they’ll learn their first lesson on how the big miracle works.
“They’re always amazed by how such tiny seeds can become such giant plants,” said Shonali Harrison, director of Eden Prairie Montessori. “When we first introduce them to gardening, we pass around a tomato seed; something so small, even in their little hands, that it may as well be nothing. ‘This one turns into so many tomatoes. And this one makes cucumbers. And this one? Snap peas!’ we explain, showing them pictures of our gardens from years past. If they’re not fascinated by all that, then they’re in outright disbelief.
“Everybody listens raptly as Jennifer Gunderson, our managing director who just so happens to also have a green thumb, describes the tender love and care vegetables need in order to grow their best. Everybody pitches in to help till the soil, and dig holes in it, and tuck the seeds in to go night-night. Everybody takes turns watering, and pulling out weeds, and (gently) evicting the occasional unhelpful bug. ‘Everything that grows deserves to grow in a healthy environment,’ we tell them. ‘Even plants!’
“‘When are the plants coming? Why aren’t they here yet?’ they might ask, sometimes only seconds after planting them. ‘They’ll come, if we take care of them,’ we tell them. ‘All good things are worth waiting for.’
“And then they shoot up, as if out of nowhere. First little sprouts. Then slightly less little ones. Then great, big plants which tower over the children, or spread wider than their arms can reach. The tomato plants begin dangling tempting green orbs. ‘Don’t eat those!’ the preschoolers warn the eager toddlers. ‘You have to wait till it’s red!’
“Finally, harvest time. Children who once categorically disavowed eating vegetables excitedly line up for their shares of pea pods, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. How could they not love something they made themselves, after all?”
Eden Prairie Montessori’s gardening experience is much more than an alternate presentation of the Parable of the Mustard Seed. It’s the fundament for a multifaceted lesson plan.
“We learn simple botany: how seeds germinate, and how plants turn sunlight into sugar, and all the differently shaped leaves they can have,” explained Shonali. “We learn why it’s important to have strong roots and why flowers are beautiful. We learn how a caterpillar turns into a chrysalis, and then into a beautiful butterfly. We all imagine what it must be like to be a monarch, flying all the way to Mexico on wings light as sunbeams. We learn why fresh vegetables are so good for us, and why certain other foods, which aren’t made with love and patience and sunlight, aren’t. And we learn and sing songs like ‘When You Plant a Little Seed,’ and ‘The Parts of a Flower.’ And we read cute books such as How Many Fruits, and We Can Eat the Plants, and What On Earth?: Trees, and Everything Grows.
“But at the end of the day, it all begins and ends with the garden. To care for something, and to watch it grow big and strong because you took care of it … that’s not something words can quite fully describe. You have to feel it.”
Help your child feel it. Enroll them at either of Eden Prairie Montessori’s convenient locations at 7455 Market Place Drive or 8098 Glen Lane. You can also learn more about Eden Prairie Montessori’s infant, toddler, preschool, kindergarten and summer programs at EdenPrairieMontessori.com, as well as schedule a tour of either school with Shonali at your side.
“It’s not too late if your child waits to join us this autumn,” Shonali added. “Pea and cucumber season may already be behind us, but we’ve got something even more exciting in the works: squash and pumpkins!”
Children who once categorically disavowed eating vegetables excitedly line up for their shares of pea pods, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes.
Plant a little seed
In the dark, dark ground
Out comes the yellow sun
Big and round
Down comes the cool rain
Soft and slow
And up come the flowers
Grow, grow, grow