Unit 8: Plants We Eat

Here’s your chance to really focus on what plants look like and how they grow.

These hands-on activities will help you:

• Think about ways you can help children get the most out of plant explorations
• Troubleshoot problems that might arise
• Learn more about the science related to plants as living things

REFLECT: As you explore, reflect on how you could best introduce and adapt these activity ideas to suit your students and your environment. The questions in the following sections are intended to spark those reflections.

Classroom Close-Up

Our plant exploration has helped the kids become better observers, not only of the plants we’re growing inside, but of plants and other living things outside, too. Yesterday we took our magnifying lenses to the park so the kids and I could look at the new plants that are beginning to push up through the soil.

—Terry, preschool educator

Activities

Note: If you did Unit 7, Watch It Grow, you have the seeds and bulbs that you and the children planted and observed as they grew.

Indoor Plants

Planting a variety of seeds and bulbs helps children notice similarities and differences among plants. Children have been growing seeds and bulbs in soil, plastic bags, and glass jars so they can watch different parts of the plants as they grow. These different setups also help children explore what plants need in order to grow. Children learn that plants need air, water, and sunlight to grow. They also need space and time, and many plants rely on soil to supply the minerals that support their growth.

The amount of time it takes for a seed or bulb to sprout varies. The seeds and bulbs children have used usually grow quickly, so kids have had lots to observe. You have probably repotted the plants to larger containers, planted them outdoors, or perhaps sent them home with children. There is still a lot to observe as the plants mature.

In this unit, children will investigate sprouts, watch them grow, and then eat them! Children will also plant herbs and other edible plants. Remember, after the seeds sprout, place plants in a warm, sunny spot so the seedlings can continue to grow. Repot them as necessary when the roots or other plant parts need more space to grow.

Outdoor Plants

REFLECT: Where are some good, safe places to take your children for outdoor plant study? (Note the Outdoor Safety tips.)

Look Down at the Ground

• Walk around the school and outdoor play area. Look for grass or small plants growing in unusual places, such as sidewalk cracks.
• Bend down to take a closer look. Are all the plants the same? Are some of them the same? What do their leaves look like? What colors are the stems and leaves?

REFLECT: How would you describe the leaves’ sizes, shapes, textures, and colors? How might you use this activity to build children’s descriptive vocabulary?

• Look at the plants through a magnifying lens. Feel the top, the underside, and the edges of a leaf with your fingers. Do you notice any new details?
• Place a hoop or circle of string on the ground. Get down low and look at the different plants growing inside the circle. Do any of the plants have buds or flowers? Use your magnifying lens to investigate more closely.

Outdoor Safety: Check the areas where you will take the children. Look out for traffic, glass and other litter, poison ivy and other plants that can cause rashes, and stinging nettles and bushes with thorns. Be sure to tell children not to touch or eat any plants without first asking an adult.

Look Up at the Trees

Choose a fruit tree to examine.

• How big is the trunk? Can you reach your arms around it?

REFLECT: How else might you and your children measure and compare the circumference of trees? How could you chart their measurements?

• Are there any buds on the tree? If so, do you think they are leaf buds or flower buds?
• Are there flowers on the tree? Is there any fruit on the tree? What kind of fruit is it? Look at the fruit with your magnifying lens. How does it look? How does it smell? How do people use this fruit? What foods do you know that have that same smell or aroma? About how many pieces of fruit are on the tree? Are they all the same size?
• Does the tree have leaves? How would you describe the color, shape, size, and texture? Use your magnifying lens to look at the top, underside, and edges of a leaf.
• Are there signs that animals live in the trees, such as bird’s nests, squirrels on limbs, or insects on the bark? Observe, but don’t disturb them.
• Look on the ground around the tree for leaves, twigs, pieces of bark, nuts, seeds, or fruit. You may want to collect some of these for use in the classroom.

REFLECT: What are some ways you could help children become thoughtful, respectful caretakers of their environment?

Outdoor Safety: Check the areas where you will take the children. Look out for traffic, glass and other litter, poison ivy and other plants that can cause rashes, and stinging nettles and bushes with thorns. Be sure to tell children not to touch or eat any plants without first asking an adult.

Pre-Visit a Farm

Plan a visit to a farm if there are no small vegetable gardens in your neighborhood. Make a visit in advance.

• What kinds of vegetables/fruits will children observe growing on the farm?

REFLECT: How might you plan lessons in advance so children know what to look for? What kinds of snacks might you plan for before and after the visit?

• Will farm workers be planting, tending, or harvesting crops?

REFLECT: What kinds of special safety rule must children be taught before the visit?

• Are there animals on the farm as well? Will children be allowed to feed the animals?

REFLECT: What are some ways you could help children become thoughtful, respectful caretakers of the environment they will visit?

Respect the Environment: Helping your children learn to respect the environment is an important part of plant study. Collecting parts of plants that have fallen on the ground is fine, but children should not break off bark, twigs, leaves, or flowers. This can hurt or kill a plant.