Things That Grow

Things that Grow is a wonderful unit to do with young children. We spend at least two weeks on this unit and continue to watch the things we plant for weeks afterwards. I usually try to tie this in around Mother's Day and plant flowers for our moms!

Pre-Writing: Word cards with pictures: garden, plant, flower, seeds

Science: In the science center we provide a jar with water in it and I clip off a piece of a plant and let the children watch the roots grow; a branch from a tree that has buds on it; fresh flowers; seed pods (the helicopter ones are always a hit with the children); and even cotton plants. We have made a game using seeds in labeled baby food jars (with lids taped on) and the seed packet; the children match the words on the packages with the label on the jar. They are able to see the seeds and the plant it grows into. We use veggies that the children are most familiar with--carrots, lettuce, green beans, lima beans, and cauliflower.

Art: Many of the art activities are not really "art" related, but we do them as art activities:

Plant flower seeds in a small Dixie cup for our mother's. We watered and watched as the seeds sprouted. The children added a cute poem that also let the moms know the cup could be planted right in the ground because the Dixie cup will decompose as the plant grows!

Plant grass seed in a Styrofoam cup add wiggly eyes and a mouth to the outside of the cup, as the grass grows, the children can give their "grassman" a hair cut! 

Paint flowers at the easel.

Cut food items from a magazine and make a class food collage.

We planted carrots in a clear container where we could watch the roots go down and the carrots forming. We planted green beans because they grow so fast and then transplanted them outside and continued to care for them, hopefully we will be able to eat some green beans that we planted!

Math and Manipulatives: Some great file folder games are available that use apples, seeds, pickles, and carrots (things that grow) in them for math and matching skills.

Sand and Water: It is always great if it works out to use dirt in this center during this unit of study. Include things like shovels, cups, planting containers, garden gloves, and the sort to tie in with the unit theme.

Library: Here is a list of books we might use during this unit:

Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes

Season (Discovery World) by Monica Hughes

Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert

A Tree Can be.... by Judy Nayer

Vegetable Soup by Ann Morris

The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle

Working Cotton by Sherley Anne Williams

In the Tall, Tall Grass by Denise Fleming

Picking Apples and Pumpkins by Amy and Richard Hutchings

How Do Apples Grow? by Betsy Maestro

Apples, Apples, Apples by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace

Eating the Alphabet by Lois Ehlert

Where Once There Was a Wood by Denise Fleming

Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert

A Weed is a Seed by Feida Wolff

The Pea Patch Jig by Thatcher Hurd

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