Lesson
Seed Surprises
Objectives:
Students will describe the shapes, sizes, and colors of seeds.
Students will demonstrate that seeds sprout and grow into plants.
Students will
identify conditions required for growth.
Time Required:
Three one-hour
sessions
Vocabulary:
seeds - have the job of making new plants.
embryo - tiny plant. This is the part that will grow into a big plant (developing plant).
cotyledon - provides food for the tiny plant.
seed coat - protects the developing plant.
Materials:
How a Seed Grows by Helene J. Jordan
Seed Cycle (Creative drama and movement)
Various kinds of seeds (i.e., lima beans, watermelon, kidney bean, navy bean, etc.)
magnifying glasses
paper plates
toothpicks
KidPix
word processing program
Procedures:
Read How a Seed Grows by Helene J. Jordan. This books is about seeds and how they grow. First, different types of seeds are pictures and examined. Then, the author takes you through a step-by-step bean planting experiment in which students can actively participate. The third concept presented in the book takes a look at what plants need in order to grow.
Discuss the seed life cycle. Combine creative drama and movement with this activity. Tell the students the story of a how a seed grows. As you do so, have them reenact the seed as it goes through the various stages of growth. Click here Seed Cycle for a copy of the activity.
Place various seeds on paper plates and write the name of the kind of seed on the rim of the plate. Ask students to choose one seed from each. Give students magnifying glasses to examine their seeds. Discuss color, size, share and texture.
Have children find a small white spot in each of their seeds. This mark is the spot where the seed was attached to the plant it came from. Explain that the outside of a seed is covered by a "seed coat" of skin, which protects what is inside. To find out what is inside, give each child a cup filled with water to soak the seeds in overnight. (make sure students label the cups with their names.) The next day, have children take their seeds out of the water. Use a toothpick to show them how easily the skin comes off. Then open the seed and show children the "embryo," or tiny plant, inside. Explain that this is the part that will grow into a big plant when the seed is put in the soil and watered. The rest of the seed the "cotyledon" provides food for the tiny plant.
Evaluation:
Students will create a set of sequence pictures of seeds changing into plants using Kid Pix. Click here for instructions on making a KidPix slide show.
Extension
Activity:
Students can place some of the soaked seeds in a damp paper towel in a clear plastic cup. Cover the seeds with plastic wrap and place them in a warm dark place. Seeds should sprout in 2-3 days. Students can records their observations in their journals or in a Plant Log.
Home Learning:
Have students pretend to be a seed and write about their life as a seed to a plant using any word processing program. Encourage them to be creative and include such things as being carried to another location by an animal or the wind, where they are "planted" as a seed, whether or not someone cares for them, what kind of plant they become, and more. Tell what happens to them, starting with the time they are planted. Students can also illustrate what they would look like.