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Seeds


Opening a lima bean.
Opening a lima bean.
Comparing seeds by shape, size and
 colour.
















Over the course of the next few weeks,  the children will be exploring how some plants grow from seeds, how seeds travel and what is inside a seed.

This week the children asked to grow their own plants.  They couldn't wait to share their knowledge about what plants need to grow: water, soil, worms, sun, and shade. 

Before we could grow a plant, we needed to explore seeds. The children began by looking at lima beans and trying to open the seed coat.  The children learned that the seed coat is difficult to open because it is protecting the plant inside.  (We are germinating lima beans to to see how the plant and roots grow from the seed.)

I asked the children what they thought a seeds from specific plants would look like before showing them.  Most of the children thought the colour of the seeds would be the same as the colour of the plant.  For example, when I asked what carrot seeds would like, the children thought they would be orange. To their surprise, the seeds are brown in colour and very small. This led the children to compare the size, shape and colour of many different types of seeds.  The children chose from these seeds what they each wanted to plant.  The children will be growing carrots, corn, tomatoes and beans.  They will chart the growth of these plants and monitor the sun, shade and water the plants receive.  The children feel confident that they can be responsible to tend for these plants as they grow.  We will share our progress over the weeks to come.
 Planting
Planting

Comments

  1. KateMay 11, 2012 at 1:34 PM

    Hi Deb,
    I hear the children listening to one another through this description you shared. Look at the level of concentration too as they work with the seeds, soil and containers. Wonderful. By slowing down the process of the planting to look at seeds, many more questions arose. This space of individual and group discovery is so wonderful when I watch you work with the children. They are lucky to have someone who inquires right along beside them.
    kate

    ReplyDelete

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