Sowing Seeds

When is the best time to engage children in the seed sowing process? With young children seeds can be started at your Science Center throughout the school year. Seed sowing should be thought of as an experimental process not as a task that succeeds or fails. If you provide soil and seeds children will naturally put the two together and the learning begins. Sowing seeds is the beginning of investigating the life cycle. Children learn early on that not every seed produces a sprout and there are many factors that influence this such as water, heat, light, soil, and disease as well as just the fact that some seeds don't grow. What is most important is that children are given the opportunity to be observers in the process and that they learn from every experience. At my Center we started cotton seeds in January. I provided fresh cotton bolls, the children pulled the seeds from the bolls, placed them in soil, under a grow light and on a heating mat and we now have several small cotton plants waiting to be placed outdoors in the garden. Who knew! Cotton does grow in Cleveland! In February we planted popcorn seeds. Yes, the seeds came from a bag of popcorn seeds purchased at the grocery store. Try it! March brought the sowing of kale and broccoli seeds in cell packs placed under a grow light. Many parents had questions about kale its taste and uses. Stay tuned for more photos, recipes and info regarding nature study in Early Childhood. Children learn much about seeds, plants, their environment and the life cycle of plants through seed sowing.