My approach to introducing a topic to my sons has evolved into a slower paced, very concrete at the start one. So when I decided to introduce Parts of the Seed to my sons, I decided to start with purely sensory activities that will hook them into the learning for a longer haul. We have examined seeds in the past but I wanted to move more slowly to invite inquiry and experimentation.
Introducing Parts of the Seed
Here is how we began our lesson on Seeds:
Introduce with a book – I chose Eric Carle‘s The Tiny Seed 
Art – What better way to hook a child than with art and a little bit of messy? I chose to do a Seed Mosaic with a bag of ten beans from the grocery. We first explored the different seeds in the bag, which is quite varied, then I handed them the materials: glue, a bowl with seeds and a small piece of post board.
They had a great time. The result was beautiful, too.
Seed Dissection – Before we began our mosaic, I introduced them to two white kidney beans and two bowls of water. We placed the beans in the water and waited for the seed to begin coming apart. I like using kidney bean seeds because they are big and children can handle them with ease. I supplemented this exercise with FREE Parts of a Seed nomenclature cards from The Helpful Garden. There are loads of free printables on this site so I encourage you to explore the content.
Sensory Table – I also set up a sensory table with Korean Mung Beans. They are unique in their color, green, and shape, round.
Next to flax seeds, this bean might be my favorite sensory material. We talked about Korea being part of Asia and how the mung bean makes a traditional Korean food.
That is our start. The next lessons will compare and contract various seeds, learn the language of the parts and identify the plants that belong to various seeds.
Thank you for reading this post today. Please leave a comment, I love hearing from you.
Marnie
