Effects of the Lawn in a Schoolyard on Pupil’s Interest in Familiar Plants and Insects

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine effects of the lawn in a schoolyard on pupil’s interest in familiar plants and insects. We did questionnaire about familiar plants and insects for the fifth and the sixth grader of elementary schools which had the lawn in the schoolyard (=the lawn-school), and that which did not have the lawn in the schoolyard (=the non-lawn-school). As a result, the proportion which pupils had seen plants and insects in the school was higher in the lawn schools than the non-lawn-schools. Further, the proportion which pupils were afraid of insects was higher in the lawn-schools than the non-lawn-schools, too. Consequently, it is considered that pupils can get more chances to see familiar plants and insects in a school with a lawn, and a lawn in a schoolyard affects pupil’s feeling for insects.