With the coming of spring, we’ve been discussing botany for a few months now. This leaf activity is a perfect segue and compliment to botany lessons. The activity integrates physical science, movement and fresh air. Lovely combination, right?
Nature will bear the closest inspection. She invites us to lay our eye level with her smallest leaf, and take an insect view of its plain.
~ Henry David Thoreau
Leaf Pounding Physical Science Activity
Materials Needed for Physical Science Activity
- 2 wooden blocks
- 2 rubber bands
- 1 piece of muslin fabric
- Plants for leaves
- Magnifying glass
Leaf Pounding Approach – Physical Science Activity
- Gather the children
- Ask them to find a partner and collect the materials needed for the activity
- Go outside
- Ask the children to gather a leaf or two
- Demonstrate how to set up the leaf on the block with the elastic bands (you may have to help out the children)
- Pound away
- Examine outside the fabric, then peel off to examine the other side
Tips for Leaf Pounding
- Integrate language like hard, soft, slow, fast, pressure, light, surface area
- Ask questions using these words: “what do you observe when you use the base of the block? What about trying the corner edge?”
- You’ll find the children will begin to explore other approaches to test how their method may work compared to another
- Gather the group back together again and bring in botany by identifying the parts of the plant
- Encourage the children to display their leaves. They do make beautiful art pieces!
