87. Seed Activities for Kindergarten and 3rd Grade This Fall

For kindergarten, the next generation science standard that I pulled was K-ESS 3-1.

Use a model to represent the relationship between the needs of different plants and animals, including humans, and the places they live.

So for this activity, I'm going to suggest reading the book The Dandelion Seed by Joseph Anthony, illustrated by Chris Arbo.

This book is a fantastic introduction to seeds for early childhood learners and can help you investigate what seeds need to grow.

This book actually hits on plant needs, how seeds travel, and plant life cycles all wrapped up in a nice little narrative, but we're going to focus on plant needs for this kindergarten standard.

However, you could adapt this lesson to fit the standard you're working on in your classroom.

So start the lesson by telling your learners that they're going to be detectives.

It's going to be their job to figure out what the seed needs.

You could really hand this up with detective badge stickers, small notebooks for clues, hand lenses, the whole nine yards.

So in the beginning of the book, the seed leaves its plant, but then it lands in snow and doesn't grow.

Why do they think that is? What could the seed get that would help it grow? Then as it warms up, the seed begins to sprout and it soaks up sunlight.

Then it rains and the sprout grows into a flower.

Then animals visit it and the flower turns into seeds.

Then the wind takes the seeds away to start a new plant.

Once they finish the story, have them give you evidence that the plant got what it needed to survive.

What did they notice that it needed? How can they tell when it had a need fulfilled? They can look back in their detective notebooks to see what clues they found in the book to show what the seed needed to grow.

You could even create a thinking board on a bulletin board or an anchor chart that looks like a detective board with pictures, string, and sticky notes that the kids compile as evidence for what a plant needs.

If they're really into the style of activity, you could have them be detectives with another book about plant needs and see if their clues are found in that book as well.

Follow the same method by reading the book, recording clues, revisiting the clues as a class, posting their clues on the thinking board, and ultimately coming to the conclusion that plants need warmth, sunlight, water, and air to grow and survive.