This is an exciting time of year. Everything is changing and it is happening daily. The daffodils have been spectacular. The leaves are coming back onto almost all of the trees in bright colors of green and red.

Hopefully, you have been showing these changes to your children so that they can really be excited about spring.

One of the inspiring things to do in this special time of the year is to have your child see the changes by planting seeds. It is very powerful for your little one to see how quickly seeds germinate this time of year. Two of the quickest seeds to show are radishes or cosmos.

Let your child take a step toward helping nature produce either flowers or food by planting some of these seeds. The best way is in a paper cup that you can put on a saucer on a window sill. Let your child see how much water you put in each day or every other day. Then let it be his job to take care of it. For sure he should check it out each day to look for signs of green starting to appear.

Enjoy this activity together. Let him see you are excited with the first sign of growth. Let him show it to your partner and even Grandma when she comes to visit. Make a big deal out of it because this probably is his first attempt at raising a garden.

When the plant is larger, figure out where you will put it to let it grow even larger than in the cup. Again, let it be his responsibility to switch the plant from the cup into the ground and then to make sure it has water.

Take a ruler out with you when you check it and keep track of how much it grows. This is teaching him about math while you teach him about agriculture.

Don’t forget about his plant as time goes by. Check it regularly. Notice when the cosmos begins to send out buds. The radish doesn’t show its fruit but give it plenty of time because it is working on its fruit but in secret.

Talk with him about the growth on other things in the yard. Help him to appreciate the fruits that are coming out all during this season.

We all need to appreciate how marvelous this season is. Try to even get him to appreciate how nicely things look as you weed, rake and cut back dead branches in your yard. Let him help in whatever way is possible. This is a way he helps but he also gets to feel really good about what he is doing and how he is helping. Praise him for how he helps.

Let him know you appreciate his help. Listen for ways he tells you he likes what he is doing.

This isn’t a chore; this is a learning time.

Take him to the nursery just to look at the many beautiful plants he could try. Talk with him about what he would like to plant next year.

When his cosmos flower comes out, see if he would like to cut it off and bring it inside or let it continue to grow outside. Maybe he planted more than one seed and the flowers are different colors.

See when it looks like his radish might be ready. When you can harvest it, divide it into several small pieces so he can try it. The next time he plants something, he may want something that tastes different than a radish.

Enjoy your time together and all the lessons it provides. Learning is a fun thing especially with someone you love.

Cynthia Martin is the founder of the First Teacher program and former executive director of Parenting Matters Foundation, which publishes newsletters for parents, caregivers and grandparents. Reach Martin at pmf@olypen.com.