Process
This page consists of a lot more steps to implement in the classroom as well as questions and extension activities. ENJOY teaching students about Kinder"garden"!!!
1. Assemble the class in a large group for a reading. Read aloud
the beginning of Jack and the Beanstalk. Stop right after Jack receives
the magic beans. Help students make a connection between beans and seeds. Then
pass around a dish of beans and discuss the following questions. Record
students' ideas on the Smart Board or on a piece of chart paper as you
go.
>Do you think these beans are real or magic?
>Do you think the beans are like seeds?
>Do you think that plants can grow from the beans?
2. Write the question, "Can plants grow from beans?" on a piece
of chart paper and post it in the classroom.
3. Ask the students if they would like to try to grow plants
from beans themselves. Divide the class into teams of three students and provide
the necessary materials. Guide the students in the process of growing plants,
but let them determine how it should be done; should they do it the same way the
students did on the video, does anyone have any other ideas about how to grow a
plant from a bean? Let each team determine how they want to grow their plants
and take pictures of teams working in groups.
4. Once teams have determined how to grow their plants, ask
teams where they want to put their plants to grow? Does location make a
difference? Remind students that the seeds need to germinate. Guide students to
locations that will tell them something about what conditions seeds need to
germinate (such as different kinds of light or temperature).
5. After students have finished drawing and writing on their recording page, ask them to share with their teammates what they expect to happen to their beans.
6. Provide each student with a soaked lima bean. Instruct students to open their beans and observe the parts they see inside. Then ask students to list the parts that they see. Guide the discussion to bring out the following parts:
Seed coat
Cotyledons
Tiny leaves
Tiny root-like structure
Ask students what ideas they have about the functions of each
part of the bean. Make a drawing that incorporates these features and post it in
the classroom.
7. Allow teams to observe their beans for several days and to
add water to them as necessary. Each day, students should make observations,
draw their beans, and make measurements. Instruct students to:
>Write the date (Day 1, Day 2, etc.) for each round of observations.
>Write a new question each day based on that day's observation and measurements.
8. After the beans have sprouted, ask students to share their
drawings and measurements with the class. Discuss the following
questions:
>How do your drawings help answer the question, "Can plants
>Grow from beans?"
>What new idea do you have about seeds or growing
plants?
>How is this idea different from what you thought before?
>What new questions do you have?
9. Write the question, "How do plants grow?" on a piece of
chart paper or the Smart Board and ask students to share their ideas based on
their observations. Write student responses on the chart paper/Smart Board.
Guide the discussion to bring out that all of their beans followed a similar
sequence of events. Write this sequence on the chart paper/Smart Board.
11. Next, ask students, "What do plants need to grow?" Guide the
discussion to bring out that the seed starts out with its own food. Students
may have noticed that when their seeds germinated, the cotyledons shrank as the
leaves grew bigger. Use this discussion as an opportunity to describe the
importance of sunlight and soil to plants. Explain that after the food
contained in the seed runs out, the young plant needs to use its leaves and
sunlight to make more food. The plant obtains water and nutrients from the soil
using its root system.
12. Read the book Dirt: The Scoop on Soil by Natalie M. Rosinski. Discuss
with the student the importance of soil. Soil is essential to life. Without soil, we'd have no plants. Without plants, we'd have no fruits or vegetables. Animals would have no food to eat. So
people would have no food to eat. Refer students back to what they have learned
about growing plants. Lead the students in discovery of the best soil to plant
their plants, by exploring different types of soil, visiting websites,
consulting Vonda from South Dakota.
13. Explain that some plants grow to become adults in just weeks
or months, while others may take years (just as people do). This growth happens
so slowly that we don't notice it as it happens. Time-lapse photography however,
allows us to see this growth in a matter of seconds. Explain that they will now watch a short video of time-lapse photography that shows the important life stages of plant growth. Instruct
students to use the handout to describe three examples from the video that show
different stages of plant growth. Their descriptions should include drawings and
the names of the plant parts that they saw. Then have students watch the
From Seed to Flower QuickTime Video several times as needed until they have
completed the handout.
14. Conclude the activity with a class discussion. Ask students
how the video in Step 13 helped them to answer the question, "How do plants
grow?" Also discuss the following questions:
>What new idea(s) do you have about seeds or growing
plants?
>How is this idea or ideas different from what you thought
before?
15. Share a selection from the booklist to introduce students to the topic of gardening. After reading some of the books, ask the students if they would like to plant their own garden at school. Tell them they have done such a great job learning about plants and investigating the right soil for plants that you think they are ready to plant their own garden. Allow students time to talk about and share their excitement about growing a class garden. They can also explore books on their own during reading centers.
16. If possible, take a walk and look at gardens around school,
or go on a fieldtrip to explore gardens. If you cannot go on hands-on field trip
or just want to do both, take a Virtual Tour of Reiman Gardens at Iowa State
University.
17. After students have had time to explore the books and take a
trip, introduce the idea of science field journals. Explain that field journals
are used by scientist as a tool to record their observations as they work on a
project.
18. Ask students what they know about writing notebooks,
journals, diaries, and scrap books. Read some books on journals and cameras, and
allow students to make real-life connections about journals, cameras and scrap
books. Explain to students they will be using cameras and science journals
(paper/electronic) to document their garden from beginning to end. They will
take pictures that can be put in their journals as well as drawing and writing
to document the gardens progress.
19. As a class, brainstorm plans for the class garden. Sample
questions:
>What will we grow?
>What time of year do these items need to be planted?
>How much sunlight and water do they require?
>Is there a location that is best for planting?
>Where will the garden be-in a plot, on the windowsill, or in a container?
>What materials will we need for the garden project?
>How will we divide the responsibilities for the garden?
>What will happen to what we grow in the garden?
20. Invite a local farmer/s to come and share how they grow
their plants, what tools do they use? Share the student’s ideas with the
farmer/s. Ask the farmer/s if they will help the students plant the garden.
21. As a class, students and farmers can draw out the garden
plan on paper or the Smart Board. Some students may even wish to put it in their
journals.
22. Begin Planting!!
Use the camera and journals to document all the steps of getting the garden
ready and planting the plants.
23. When students are done planting, they should record the
day's activities in their science field journal. You can ask students to write
freely in the journals as an open-ended writing assignment, or you can ask them
to respond to the prompt "Describe how and where you planted your seed. Add an
illustration/picture of the seed." If desired, the students can also tape or
glue the seed packet or label from the potted plant into their science field
journal.
24. Before the seeds begin to grow, invite the students to make
predictions by responding to questions such as the
following:
>What will happen to the seed?
>What is the first thing we will see?
>How tall will the plant grow to be?
>What colors will we see?
>What if the plant doesn't grow?
25. While waiting for the plants to sprout, students can use
their science field journals to try the following
projects:
>Write creative stories about gardens and gardening.
>Write poetry about plants, including cinquains, haiku, and acrostics.
>Write a description of a garden they have seen, focusing on what they liked about it
and some of the details they remember about it.
26. Once the plants have sprouted, students can use their
science field journals to try the following projects:
>Draw what the plants look like as they sprout.
>Record daily observations, measurements, and comparisons of plants grown under
different light conditions.
>Measure the plants and record their data, perhaps using a class growth chart on the
wall.
>Write about the rates at which the different plants grew and why think they think the
growth happened at the pace that it did.
>Compare the young plants with the mature plant pictures-students can write, draw, or
complete a Venn Diagram of their findings.
>Collect and press a few leaves, flowers, or other finds.
>Describe other things that live in the garden and talk about their purpose in the
garden.
27. Looking at more mature plants, students can use their
science field journals to try the following projects:
>Describe the leaves on the plants, considering vein pattern, color, texture, shape, and
leaf size.
>Observe the flowers-list their attributes, dissect the flowers, separate the parts and
pieces.
>Describe the plants using as many of the five senses as
possible.
>Write about a change they noticed in the garden since the last time they
observed.
>Write a description of the garden from the point of view of the root, stem, leaf, or
flower of a plant.
28. As questions arise from the observations and experiments,
use them as teachable moments by finding the answers
together.
Culminating activity:
Students can have a party and serve the food they grew in their
gardens, with the non-edible plants and flowers that were grown; they can give
them away as gifts to other teachers in the school or to organizations such as
nursing homes.
Extensions:
>For an art connection, students can design seed packets, garden signs or garden
stepping stones.
>As an experiment, subject some of the plants to extremes-over water them (to
explore floods) or do not water them (to explore droughts). Water some of the
plants with salt water, or slowly remove soil to simulate erosion.
>Students can create their own garden story with Story Patch or Little Birds.
>Students can start a blog about their garden.
1. Assemble the class in a large group for a reading. Read aloud
the beginning of Jack and the Beanstalk. Stop right after Jack receives
the magic beans. Help students make a connection between beans and seeds. Then
pass around a dish of beans and discuss the following questions. Record
students' ideas on the Smart Board or on a piece of chart paper as you
go.
>Do you think these beans are real or magic?
>Do you think the beans are like seeds?
>Do you think that plants can grow from the beans?
2. Write the question, "Can plants grow from beans?" on a piece
of chart paper and post it in the classroom.
3. Ask the students if they would like to try to grow plants
from beans themselves. Divide the class into teams of three students and provide
the necessary materials. Guide the students in the process of growing plants,
but let them determine how it should be done; should they do it the same way the
students did on the video, does anyone have any other ideas about how to grow a
plant from a bean? Let each team determine how they want to grow their plants
and take pictures of teams working in groups.
4. Once teams have determined how to grow their plants, ask
teams where they want to put their plants to grow? Does location make a
difference? Remind students that the seeds need to germinate. Guide students to
locations that will tell them something about what conditions seeds need to
germinate (such as different kinds of light or temperature).
5. After students have finished drawing and writing on their recording page, ask them to share with their teammates what they expect to happen to their beans.
6. Provide each student with a soaked lima bean. Instruct students to open their beans and observe the parts they see inside. Then ask students to list the parts that they see. Guide the discussion to bring out the following parts:
Seed coat
Cotyledons
Tiny leaves
Tiny root-like structure
Ask students what ideas they have about the functions of each
part of the bean. Make a drawing that incorporates these features and post it in
the classroom.
7. Allow teams to observe their beans for several days and to
add water to them as necessary. Each day, students should make observations,
draw their beans, and make measurements. Instruct students to:
>Write the date (Day 1, Day 2, etc.) for each round of observations.
>Write a new question each day based on that day's observation and measurements.
8. After the beans have sprouted, ask students to share their
drawings and measurements with the class. Discuss the following
questions:
>How do your drawings help answer the question, "Can plants
>Grow from beans?"
>What new idea do you have about seeds or growing
plants?
>How is this idea different from what you thought before?
>What new questions do you have?
9. Write the question, "How do plants grow?" on a piece of
chart paper or the Smart Board and ask students to share their ideas based on
their observations. Write student responses on the chart paper/Smart Board.
Guide the discussion to bring out that all of their beans followed a similar
sequence of events. Write this sequence on the chart paper/Smart Board.
11. Next, ask students, "What do plants need to grow?" Guide the
discussion to bring out that the seed starts out with its own food. Students
may have noticed that when their seeds germinated, the cotyledons shrank as the
leaves grew bigger. Use this discussion as an opportunity to describe the
importance of sunlight and soil to plants. Explain that after the food
contained in the seed runs out, the young plant needs to use its leaves and
sunlight to make more food. The plant obtains water and nutrients from the soil
using its root system.
12. Read the book Dirt: The Scoop on Soil by Natalie M. Rosinski. Discuss
with the student the importance of soil. Soil is essential to life. Without soil, we'd have no plants. Without plants, we'd have no fruits or vegetables. Animals would have no food to eat. So
people would have no food to eat. Refer students back to what they have learned
about growing plants. Lead the students in discovery of the best soil to plant
their plants, by exploring different types of soil, visiting websites,
consulting Vonda from South Dakota.
13. Explain that some plants grow to become adults in just weeks
or months, while others may take years (just as people do). This growth happens
so slowly that we don't notice it as it happens. Time-lapse photography however,
allows us to see this growth in a matter of seconds. Explain that they will now watch a short video of time-lapse photography that shows the important life stages of plant growth. Instruct
students to use the handout to describe three examples from the video that show
different stages of plant growth. Their descriptions should include drawings and
the names of the plant parts that they saw. Then have students watch the
From Seed to Flower QuickTime Video several times as needed until they have
completed the handout.
14. Conclude the activity with a class discussion. Ask students
how the video in Step 13 helped them to answer the question, "How do plants
grow?" Also discuss the following questions:
>What new idea(s) do you have about seeds or growing
plants?
>How is this idea or ideas different from what you thought
before?
15. Share a selection from the booklist to introduce students to the topic of gardening. After reading some of the books, ask the students if they would like to plant their own garden at school. Tell them they have done such a great job learning about plants and investigating the right soil for plants that you think they are ready to plant their own garden. Allow students time to talk about and share their excitement about growing a class garden. They can also explore books on their own during reading centers.
16. If possible, take a walk and look at gardens around school,
or go on a fieldtrip to explore gardens. If you cannot go on hands-on field trip
or just want to do both, take a Virtual Tour of Reiman Gardens at Iowa State
University.
17. After students have had time to explore the books and take a
trip, introduce the idea of science field journals. Explain that field journals
are used by scientist as a tool to record their observations as they work on a
project.
18. Ask students what they know about writing notebooks,
journals, diaries, and scrap books. Read some books on journals and cameras, and
allow students to make real-life connections about journals, cameras and scrap
books. Explain to students they will be using cameras and science journals
(paper/electronic) to document their garden from beginning to end. They will
take pictures that can be put in their journals as well as drawing and writing
to document the gardens progress.
19. As a class, brainstorm plans for the class garden. Sample
questions:
>What will we grow?
>What time of year do these items need to be planted?
>How much sunlight and water do they require?
>Is there a location that is best for planting?
>Where will the garden be-in a plot, on the windowsill, or in a container?
>What materials will we need for the garden project?
>How will we divide the responsibilities for the garden?
>What will happen to what we grow in the garden?
20. Invite a local farmer/s to come and share how they grow
their plants, what tools do they use? Share the student’s ideas with the
farmer/s. Ask the farmer/s if they will help the students plant the garden.
21. As a class, students and farmers can draw out the garden
plan on paper or the Smart Board. Some students may even wish to put it in their
journals.
22. Begin Planting!!
Use the camera and journals to document all the steps of getting the garden
ready and planting the plants.
23. When students are done planting, they should record the
day's activities in their science field journal. You can ask students to write
freely in the journals as an open-ended writing assignment, or you can ask them
to respond to the prompt "Describe how and where you planted your seed. Add an
illustration/picture of the seed." If desired, the students can also tape or
glue the seed packet or label from the potted plant into their science field
journal.
24. Before the seeds begin to grow, invite the students to make
predictions by responding to questions such as the
following:
>What will happen to the seed?
>What is the first thing we will see?
>How tall will the plant grow to be?
>What colors will we see?
>What if the plant doesn't grow?
25. While waiting for the plants to sprout, students can use
their science field journals to try the following
projects:
>Write creative stories about gardens and gardening.
>Write poetry about plants, including cinquains, haiku, and acrostics.
>Write a description of a garden they have seen, focusing on what they liked about it
and some of the details they remember about it.
26. Once the plants have sprouted, students can use their
science field journals to try the following projects:
>Draw what the plants look like as they sprout.
>Record daily observations, measurements, and comparisons of plants grown under
different light conditions.
>Measure the plants and record their data, perhaps using a class growth chart on the
wall.
>Write about the rates at which the different plants grew and why think they think the
growth happened at the pace that it did.
>Compare the young plants with the mature plant pictures-students can write, draw, or
complete a Venn Diagram of their findings.
>Collect and press a few leaves, flowers, or other finds.
>Describe other things that live in the garden and talk about their purpose in the
garden.
27. Looking at more mature plants, students can use their
science field journals to try the following projects:
>Describe the leaves on the plants, considering vein pattern, color, texture, shape, and
leaf size.
>Observe the flowers-list their attributes, dissect the flowers, separate the parts and
pieces.
>Describe the plants using as many of the five senses as
possible.
>Write about a change they noticed in the garden since the last time they
observed.
>Write a description of the garden from the point of view of the root, stem, leaf, or
flower of a plant.
28. As questions arise from the observations and experiments,
use them as teachable moments by finding the answers
together.
Culminating activity:
Students can have a party and serve the food they grew in their
gardens, with the non-edible plants and flowers that were grown; they can give
them away as gifts to other teachers in the school or to organizations such as
nursing homes.
Extensions:
>For an art connection, students can design seed packets, garden signs or garden
stepping stones.
>As an experiment, subject some of the plants to extremes-over water them (to
explore floods) or do not water them (to explore droughts). Water some of the
plants with salt water, or slowly remove soil to simulate erosion.
>Students can create their own garden story with Story Patch or Little Birds.
>Students can start a blog about their garden.