Science Project Planting a Garden Ingrid Chowrimootoo

Topic Selected Objective: Teaching a class of 6 years old future gardeners about the life cycle of a plant, where flowers come from and what plants need to grow. Growing a plant from a seed brings children closer to nature. Spring School garden

Introduction to Topic Read “And Then It’s Spring” written by Julie Fogliano and illustrated by Erin E. Stesd.

Introduction Class discussion: What plants are - fruit, vegetables, herbs, grass, as well as flowering plants and shrubs. Why we need plants- Food for us and animals Some poisonous plants that must not be touched. What plants need to grow: soil, water, sun and air.

Preparing to Explore! Children will save their milk cartons so we can plant a garden. Each child will wash their milk cartons and let it dry. Children will decorate the outside of their cartons and write their names on them.

Time to Explore! Children will use a spoon to fill their container with soil until the soil is about 1 inch from the top of their container. Class will read bean seed packet together and determine how deep to plant the seeds- (We will use a ruler and fingers to measure the depth.) Each child will be given 4 seeds- They will gently push the seeds into the soil to the required depth.

Time To Explore! Children will water their newly planted seeds . Children will place their containers along the window sill where it’s warm and there’s not too much direct sunlight.

Record Observations! Each morning, Each child will check out their gardens as soon as they arrived. They will sprinkle their container with water. Questions: Is a sprout is emerging? Each child will record their observations as the seeds germinate and seedlings begin to sprout from the seeds. Class will be provided with a chart and children can measure the progress of their plant's growth. As the plant grows taller, children will count leaves and record. As children notice the changing appearance of the plant they may draw a picture each day of what their plant looks like as a morning activity prior to circle time.

Assessment As children report how their plants are growing and how they are caring for their plants I will make notes about their comments. As the class works on their garden, I will continue discussions with the children and determine the level of their understanding about where vegetables come from and what they are learning about keeping their plants healthy . Through all experiments there are trials and errors, so the class will compare their bean plants and discuss why some plants may have died off, or are drooping and others are blooming.

Follow-up activity? Learn the connection between the foods we eat and the source of where it came from. Promote development of healthy eating habits and nutritional food -make smart food choices now and throughout their lifetime. Classroom fieldtrip to a local botanical garden so children can see the many different varieties of plants and their beauty. – Meadowlark Botanical Garden in Vienna, Virginia. http://www.nvrpa.org/park/meadowlark_botanical_gardens

Math concepts… Predict how many beans will actually grow into plants using the “Germination Rate” found on the back of the seed packet. Once the plants begin to grow the children can measure the growth of their plants. Count the amount of leaves. Count the number of days it takes for the plant to bloom or reach a specific height?

Science and Children This lesson teaches children that all life has a small beginning and grows into fullness from there. Just like plants, children can only grow properly when they receive adequate nutrition, and care. Plants give everyone an added sense of responsibility. Teaching children about responsibility is crucial and caring for plants is an easy way to learn. Growing plants requires patience and it’s important that children grown into patient adults.