Seeds & Plants:
Learning about seeds is a great way for children to practice the scientific method. While exploring seeds, they will come up with questions. They can do research about seeds and plants based on their inquiries. Next, they can test their hypothesis by planting seeds and observing them overtime. After planting the seeds, they can draw conclusions about their original wondering and develop new ones based on their findings.
Here is a link to a song about seeds: https://youtu.be/sK6SfpOIhAQ
Activities:
Seed Sorting:
*This activity was done with beans, but any type of seeds can be used*
You will need:
A variety pack of seeds
Large Container
Several little Cups
Magnifying Glasses
Place all of the seeds in a large container and have the children sort the seeds. They can sort the seeds in many different ways. The children could also research what kind of beans they might be and attempt to find what each bean is.
Ask the children what they think would happen if they planted these beans
Lima Bean Experiment-
You will need:
Lima Beans (enough for each child to have several)
Sharpie Markers
Cups (1 for each child)
Measuring tools
Magnifying Glasses
Tweezers
Water
The children will use any technique they want to label the lima beans (different colors, numbers, names, etc.). Then they will measure each beans and write down their observations. When they are done, they will place their beans in their cup and cover them with water.
Let the beans sit for several days. Children can frequently return to the cups to observe any noticeable changes and write them down. After about three days, the children will take the beans out and observe the beans again. They can write down their observations and measure the beans again. This is when the children can use tweezer to dissect the bean and have a discussion about what they find.
Tip: It might also be helpful to provide dry lima beans at this part of the lesson so children can see and feel the difference rather than simply using their memory.
Books:
*This book would be a great introduction to a math lesson using seeds!
