In primary school, learning becomes truly valuable when children understand the meaning behind what they do. When mathematics steps out of the exercise book and into nature—when children measure plants with rulers and divide seedlings into trays—everything begins to make sense. The garden created by the Grade 2 and Grade 3 students provided an authentic learning context where mathematical concepts could be practised, applied, and understood in a concrete and relevant way, firmly anchored in real life. In this way, concepts that might otherwise seem abstract gained meaning and practical utility through direct experience.
This activity is part of the PACT for IMPACT project, through which our school—selected under the “Grants for Pilot Education Units” call funded by Romania’s Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR)—aims to bring about a real transformation in how Mathematics is taught in Primary School.
Andreea Dumitrescu, primary school teacher and educational gardening expert within the PACT for IMPACT project, shares how this educational garden took shape and how learning was brought into the schoolyard.
Context
Learning shouldn’t be limited to desks and textbooks. Early exposure to nature and hands-on activities like gardening revives the most intuitive learning environment—one where direct exploration and sensory interaction nurture curiosity, understanding, and respect for the living world.
We launched this project in March with Grade 2 and Grade 3 pupils to explore how practical gardening activities could be meaningfully integrated into the Mathematics curriculum, transforming often abstract concepts into concrete, engaging experiences. This approach brought Mathematics closer to pupils in a playful and interactive way, and proved to be a real success among the children.
Why Gardening and Mathematics?
Beyond developing basic skills, gardening cultivates responsibility, care for the environment, an understanding of plant life, and observation and investigation abilities. Perhaps most importantly, gardening made Mathematics relevant and enjoyable. Through working with soil, seeds, and plants, pupils were able to directly see and apply what they were learning in class.
The gardening activities were intentionally designed to cover a wide range of mathematical skills, tailored to the learning level of Grade 2 and Grade 3 students. Pupils measured plant heights and leaf sizes using rulers, recorded this data weekly in calendars or tables, and tracked plant growth over time. This simple task reinforced both measurement skills and the ability to collect and organise data.
Gardening also provided many contexts for practising basic operations. Planting seeds in trays involved using multiplication to calculate the total number of plants in a tray or in a given number of cells. Some challenges required division, such as figuring out how many pots were needed to plant a certain number of seedlings evenly, or dividing different types of flowers equally into recycled tyres used as planters.
A practical budgeting activity asked students to calculate how many seedlings could be purchased with a set amount of money, based on price per tray, or to suggest material purchases for expanding the school garden within a fixed budget.
Fractions became tangible when pupils divided planting areas into equal parts and drew plants to represent simple fractions such as ½, ¼, ¾, ⅜, ⅖, and ⅓. This hands-on, visual approach greatly supported their understanding of fractions and proportions. The garden also served as an excellent context for exploring geometric shapes.
The project showed that integrating gardening into Mathematics is not only possible but highly beneficial. Pupils were actively engaged, curious, and eager to learn. By measuring plant growth, calculating required resources, or planning garden layouts, mathematical concepts gained direct meaning and relevance. Problem-solving skills were nurtured through real-life gardening scenarios, while peer discussions supported mathematical communication.
In conclusion, educational gardening proved to be an innovative and effective method for teaching and learning Mathematics in Grade 2 and Grade 3. The combination of hands-on outdoor activities and applied mathematical thinking created a stimulating learning environment that contributed to pupils’ overall development on multiple levels.
What’s more, the entire school community—from the youngest to the oldest—now enjoys the beauty of the garden, which has become a daily source of inspiration and joy for all.
