Seed germination – plant creation
Toddlers, Preschoolers
| Engagement level:
Simple and inexpensive, plant bean seeds in plastic cups to allow young gardeners to watch seeds sprout, introducing them to the life cycle of plant
Skills and benefits:
- Creativity
- Mathematical and scientific concepts
What you'll need:
- Clear plastic cups (can be washed and reused)
- Construction paper
- Paper towels
- Seed varieties – snow peas, broad beans grow the quickest!
- Water
What to do:
- Help children place a piece of construction paper inside a plastic cup so that it lines the side of the cup.
- Ball up a few pieces of paper towel and place them inside the construction paper liner until the cup is full.
- Let them pick out 3 to 4 seeds and place them in the cup between the side of the cup and the construction paper liner.
- Gently water the paper towel in the centre until saturated.
- Place the cup (or cups if you would like to try multiples) on a shelf or windowsill and watch them grow. First, you will notice the seed coat expanding (wrinkling) as the seed absorbs water and then the root will start to grow in 2 to 3 days. 6. Water is necessary to keep the paper towel and seeds continually moist (please note, they will not grow well outside because they will dry out too quickly). Seed germination can be impacted if the temperatures are too cold (if you are comfortable, most likely your seeds will be too).
- After the roots emerge, the stem and leaves will begin to appear. You can continue to grow your plant as long as you want for observation, however, generally seeds that have been sprouted this way do not transplant well out into the garden and they will not be able to go grow to maturity in the cup.
Tips
- Activity should take around 15 minutes
- Allow for 7 – 14 days for observation
- For younger children, cut pieces of construction paper into rectangular strips to fit inside the plastic cups ahead of time.
