Shaw Mhor EYC 2021

In order to undertake this project we began by thinking about what the children already knew about the term ‘pocket garden’. From this we then shared our thoughts and ideas about what they would like to have in their own garden. We discussed the best ways to encourage wildlife into our courtyard, using books and the internet to discover which flowers would be best and followed this up by making a plan on paper to show the exactly to scale, the size of our intended garden. The children were particularly keen to have a fairy garden so we ensured we had an area set aside for this. This created even more excitement and interest for this project.

Even got the kitchen sink

Carefully watering the plants

Colourful flower bed 

We are very grateful to have the support of our local businesses, and a nearby allotment very kindly donated materials such as wooden pallets, grass, seeds, soil and strawberry cuttings. We ensured we recycled and reused as many materials for our pocket garden as we could, some of which included plastic bottles, flowerpots, a bathroom sink and a bird bath. We planted a variety of flowers, herbs and grass heads. We made sure we included wildflowers; Aster, marigolds and geraniums as they gave the garden a more natural feel and encouraged the bees too.

Soon after planting we discovered our strawberries began to die. We sought advice from Jenny our mentor and she advised us to remove them from the plastic bottles and replant them in a bigger pot. At the same time she told us blueberries prefer rainwater. Taking this advice on board we worked with our neighbouring primary 7 class to make rain catchers and used the rain we collected (plenty as we live in Scotland!) for our blueberries.

Corner basket planter

Splash of colour

Watering plants

We had previously discussed mini beasts, a main focus being caterpillars. From this we investigated and observed their lifecycle and when fully grown, released them in our garden.

Our children worked as a team, together and developed a wide range of skills in the process. They learned to problem solve, design, share ideas, use ICT for research, and use real life tools to name just a few, learning every step of the way and enjoying every minute of the process.

Getting creative

Getting practical

Getting results