Growing Seedlings

Growing a garden is a norm for my children but not all children have access to a planter, let alone a garden. Including gardening options in our daycare and school curriculums gives all children the opportunity to experience the joy of growing a plant from a seed.

Here is a list of easy to grow plants. Success is important so children are encouraged.

We have tried various growing options including peat pellets:

But nothing beats getting your hands stuck into a bag of potting soil, as we did when making fairy gardens:

There are so many ways to incorporate gardening in the classroom.

Ideas for cross-curricular links

Science:

• Experiment with conditions (variables) such as heat, light, water
• Investigate what does a seed needs to germinate
• Investigate what a plant needs to grow
• Make a hypothesis
• Takes measurements
• Record results
• Learn about the parts of a plant by growing in a clear pot.

The Sprout and Grow Window and Root Vue Farm allow children to see roots growing.

Math:

• Measure the plant every few days
• Measure leaf size
• Count number of leaves or flowers

Art:

• Draw the seedling every few days to show the development
• Emphasize the importance of proportion
• Use diagrams to represent plant life cycles

Language Arts:

• Tell the story of a seed (life cycles)
• Read non-fiction texts about plants and gardening and analyze structure.
• Use drama to act out the life cycle of a flowering plant (involving bees for pollination, and animals for seed dispersal)

There are so many ways to include growing seedlings or plants in the classroom.

Happy growing.