Activity: Sorting Seeds

In this activity, students will learn to sort and describe seeds according to various characteristics, including size, shape, color and texture.


Materials

• Four or five different types of seeds. Try to find seeds and beans that vary in size, color, texture, and shape. The more variety, the better! [Examples: Bird seed or dried beans]
  

Activity

1. Give each child an assortment of seeds. Remind students to not eat the seeds.
2. Allow the children to have a couple of minutes to play with the seeds. Tell students to examine them, make patterns, or make shapes and pictures with their seeds.
3. Have students organizeseeds or create different categories for the seeds. To start, tell them to create piles of seeds that are the same color.
4. While students are sorting, on a board or chart paper, create four columns with the headings: color, size, shape, texture.
5. Ask students to describe the piles of seeds they created. Remind students that there is not one correct answer to these questions and that students may have decided to sort their seeds differently.
   How are the groups similar and how are the groups different?
   What do each of the piles look like?
6. Write the responses under the “color” column. Examples: red, brown, dark, light
7. Repeat, asking students to sort and describe seeds according to their size, shape or texture.
   

Activity: How does your garden grow?

This sequencing activity allows children to imagine being a farmer or gardener. Children will practice following directions, putting items into a sequence or particular order, and using basic addition and subtraction.


Materials:
Worksheet containing images of four tomatoes, four ears of corn, four heads of lettuce and four carrots
Brown construction paper
Coloring supplies
Scissors

Activity:

1. Give each student the vegetable worksheet, one piece of brown construction paper, coloring supplies and scissors.
   
   
2. Have students color and cut out the pictures of the vegetables. Make sure that students color in the vegetables the appropriate colors.
   
   
3. Explain to students that we will now plant our garden but we have to follow very specific instructions to make sure that everything grows.
   
   
4. Tell students that the piece of brown construction paper is their garden. The side of the paper closest to them is the front of the garden and the edge of the paper that is furthest away from them is the back of the garden. (It may be useful to demonstrate this to students to avoid confusion)
   
   
5. As you read each example to the class, have students arrange their vegetables in their garden. Tell students that they may need to rearrange or change their vegetables as each clue is given. Read each example two or three times so that students can check their work. You may need to do the first example together so students get an idea of what they are supposed to do.
   
   EXAMPLE ONE:
   The tomatoes get planted in the front row of the garden.
   The lettuce gets planted in a row behind the tomatoes.
   The corn gets planted in a row in front of the lettuce.
   The carrots get planted in the back row of the garden.
   
   
   
   EXAMPLE TWO:
   The corn gets planted in the front row of the garden.
   The tomatoes get planted in the back row of the garden.
   The lettuce gets planted in a row right behind the corn.
   The carrots get planted where you think they should go.
   
   
   
   EXAMPLE THREE:
   The yellow vegetable gets planted the back row of the garden.
   The red vegetable gets planted in a row right in front of the yellow vegetable.
   The green vegetable gets planted in the front row.
   The orange vegetable gets planted where you think it should go.
   
   
   
   EXAMPLE FOUR:
   The yellow vegetable gets planted in a row in the middle of the garden.
   The red vegetable gets planted in a row in front of the yellow vegetable.
   The green vegetable gets planted in the back row of the garden.
   The orange vegetable gets planted in the front row of the garden.
   





6. After reading each example, review it together and show the correct arrangement of vegetables.


7. After completing each example or after doing all of the examples, students will now "harvest" their vegetables. Read each "recipe" below and have students remove the appropriate number of vegetables from the garden and place them in an imaginary basket. You can follow up by asking students how many vegetables are left in the garden or row, how many vegetables did they pick from the garden, etc.
   
   RECIPE 1:
   Two heads of lettuce
   Three ears of corn
   One tomato
   One carrot
   
   RECIPE 2:
   Three ears of corn
   Four carrots
   Two heads of lettuce
   
   RECIPE 3:
   Two tomatoes
   Three carrots
   All of the lettuce
   One ear of corn
   
   RECIPE 4:
   One head of lettuce
   One tomato
   Two carrots
   Two ears of corn
   

Activity adapted from AIMS Education Foundation's "The McGregors' Garden" Activity

Activity: Gardener Interview

Interviewing a local gardener provides a great opportunity for children to learn gardening tips and to recognize that their school garden is one of many gardens in the community.

The follow activity outlines the steps for conducting a gardener interview with your students. The goals of this activity are for students to learn how to ask good questions and conduct an interview, practice listening skills, synthesize information, create stories or draw pictures, and learn about local gardening techniques.

Materials:
Local gardener to be interviewed
Pens/Pencils
Paper

Activity:

1. Contact a local gardener and invite him/her to come to your class. Consider contacting a parent, community member or local master gardener volunteer.
   Make sure that whomever you contact is comfortable speaking in front of your class.
2. Discuss interviewing techniques with your students. Make sure they understand how to ask good questions and use good listening skills.
   If necessary, break students into pairs to practice interviewing and listening. Have them interview each other and present what they heard.
3. Brainstorm interview questions to ask the gardener.
   Examples:
   When did you begin gardening?
   What types of fruits/vegetables do you plant?
   How do you use the plants?
   What tips/suggestions do you have for our garden?
4. Have students write down the questions they will ask the gardener.
5. Confirm the date/time of the interview with the gardener.
6. On the day of the interview, ask a student to introduce the class.
7. Either ask the gardener to describe their gardening experience or have students begin asking questions.
8. If you already have a school garden, show it to your guest.
9. Thank the gardener for coming to the class.
10. After the interview, discuss with the class what they learned.
11. Have students either write a story about the interview or draw a picture.
12. Send a thank you note to the gardener.

Inviting a gardener to come to your classroom allows students to realize that they are part of a larger gardening community. It can be conducted before students start a garden or once they have begun gardening. Either way, it should allow for great gardening stories to be shared!

Work Cited:

Activity adapted from Krasny, M. (2005, June). Garden Mosaics Program Manual. Cornell University.