Home Preschool: Seeds and Plants

It's the perfect time to learn about growing plants! We didn't even do half the activities I was planning on doing, because life happens, but it was still really fun. It was also super easy, because I tried to incorporate the spring time activities that we already do, like planting our vegetable garden.

Here are the activities we did:

Pumpkin practiced her cutting skills with cupcake papers and glued them onto construction paper to make flowers.

We put white flowers into jars of dyed water, and watched the petals turn different colors over the course of several days. We discussed the functions of the different parts of a plant, and Pumpkin surprised me by asking, "Mom, is the stem like a straw and it sucks the water up?"

We grew mung bean sprouts in a jar! This kit was given to us by Kirsten at Rising Sun Acres, but here's a basic tutorial on how to do this yourself. It was really easy, and Pumpkin loved snacking on them, which is pretty funny, because she's a really picky eater. We ate these sprouts on tacos, and it was delish.

We planted fruits and vegetables! We started some seedlings in an egg carton, and so far, they've survived being nibbled on by a cat and dumped by a toddler, so they must be pretty hardy. We also planted some vegetables in pots on our deck, since we have no yard. Pumpkin is very enthusiastic about caring for her plants and waters them regularly. She prefers to do the ones on the deck "all by myself!" She even talks to them to help them grow!

Here are some of the books we read:
All About Seeds, by Claire Throp
Poppy, Buttercup, Bluebell & Dandy, by Fiona Woodcock
Lola Plants a Garden, by Anna McQuinn
Mrs. Peanuckle's Flower Alphabet
Sprout, Seed, Sprout! by Annika Dunklee
Zinnia's Flower Garden, by Monica Wellington

Here are the videos we watched:
The Dr. Binocs Show: Parts of a Plant
Peep Plants a Seed
Olivia Plants a Garden