John Rensten discusses how knowledge of a single plant group can enable you to identiy 100 edible plants when you are out foraging.
Dissect a bean seed lab! Perfect for preschool and elementary kids science!
Hey blogging friends! Just a little post to share some of the things that we've been working on this past week...PLANTS! Plants that grow u...
Whether they're a lifelong mentor or someone you not-so-fondly remember as 'Voldemort,' every manager you encounter has something to teach you.
In this cooking and food science fair project, students will determine which cooking liquids slow bean softening, and which cooking liquids speed up bean softening.
Spring has definitely arrived here and I am itching to get outside in the garden. We have big, maybe too big given our newborn, plans for the garden this year including a square foot gardening project for the older girls. (That particular project involves power tools - hooray!) We just received some seeds we ordered in the mail this week from Seeds of Change (a great source for organic seeds - we got some San Marzano tomato seeds this year because I hear they make an amazing sauce!) and I made the comment about every seed having a baby plant inside. The girls, as you can imagine with a new baby in the house, are fascinated by babies right now and wanted to see the baby plant so we decided to dissect some beans! Materials Needed: variety of dried beans - we used a bag of mixed dried beans intended for soup water paper towels 5 plastic containers magnifying glass markers - I recommend permanent (for adult use!) science journal What You Do: The first step is to sort the mixture of beans. Select 4-5 different types of beans that you want to examine from your mixture. Try to pick the larger, meatier beans. We used lima, pinto, northern, kidney and pink beans. You can do this with just one bean type, but since we wanted to compare the different beans and it is also good practice with the skill of classification, we decided to use a mixture of beans. Once the beans have been sorted, carefully pour water to cover them and leave for 24 hours. If you are limited on time, you can also try using hot water and leaving the beans for an hour or two to soften. Have your child make a prediction about the seeds - maybe how big the baby plant is inside or whether the baby plants will look the same or different between the variety of beans. When the beans have softened (you should see the seed coat starting to peel off a bit of its own accord), remove it from the water and carefully remove the seed coat then split the seed in half. You may need to use your thumbnail to help split the bean. Examine the baby plant inside the bean with the help of a magnifying glass. Your child should be able to see the embryonic leaves and a structure that looks like a miniature root. (See below for an explanation of the parts of the seed.) You can use the markers to very gently color the different parts so they are easier to identify. I tried using both washable and permanent markers and the permanent (or, in the words of Robert Munsch in Purple, Green and Yellow "super-indelible-never-come-off-til-your-dead-and-maybe-even-later" markers) were much better at transferring color to the structures, but you may want to have the adult do it! Ask them to evaluate their prediction. We were looking at whether the baby plants would look similar or different and the girls decided that all the bean seeds looked pretty similar to each other, although some were larger than others. As a side note, if you are only going to choose one type of bean to do this with, don't be tempted to choose the lima bean because of its large size - the embryonic plant was not much bigger than the others and we found that the radicle (root structure) kept breaking when we tried to open each of the beans. Have your child draw what they see in their science journal. What's Happening? A seed contains all of the materials necessary for the early life of a plant, including the seed coat for protection, the endoderm and the embryonic ("baby") plant. The seed coat is also called the testa. On beans, you can often see the hilium, or scar tisssue, that marks where the seed was connected to the mother plant. In addition, above the hilium you may be able to see the micropyle, a small hole that the pollen tube entered during fertilization and through which water can enter to aid in the early growth of the seed. The endosperm serves as the food source until the plant is big enough to make food on its own. The majority of the human diet consists of plant endosperm - from starchy popcorn to the wheat seeds that are milled to make flour. The endosperm is made up of two cotyledons in bean plants, which are considered dicots. Other plants like corn, which are monocots, contain only one cotyledon. (di = two, and mono = one) The cotyledons are often called the seed leaves when they emerge from the soil - all the rest of the leaves develop above the seed leaves and the seed leaves eventually wither away when the food has been used up and the plant is able to produce its own food. The plant embryo consists of different tissues including the epicotyl, hypocotyl and the radicle. The radicle emerges first during germination and travels down into the soil forming a long tap root. The epicotyl is the part of the plant embryo above where the cotyledons are attached (epi = over or on top of) and it eventually forms the leaves of the plant. The hypocotyl is the part of the plant embryo below which the cotyledons are attached (hypo = low or below). The epicotyl will eventually form the stem of the plants. The picture below is of a pinto bean with the parts of the plant embryo color coded (very generally). (The pic was taken with my iPhone using the easy macro cell lens band from photojojo.com - the best $15 I've ever spent!) Extensions We used some awesome parts of a seed cards that are a free download on the Walk Beside Me blog. (She also has parts of a flower, parts of a leaf and parts of a plant cards!) They are in a Montessori style and, as both my older girls are in Montessori this year, they immediately grasped the idea behind them. We printed out two copies, cut off the title in one of the copies and had them match all the cards of the same structure together. A great book to teach about the nature of seeds is "A Seed is Sleepy". It talks about different types of seeds, and it might be really fun to try this experiment again but with different types of seeds. Try to get fairly large seeds that are a variety of monocots and dicots - so, maybe corn, bean and pea. Because some seeds have much tougher seed coats (if you've ever planted morning glories you know you are supposed to nick them before you plant them) you may have to experiment with how long the seeds need to be soaked. Check out this time lapse video from YouTube of radish seeds growing. You will notice the radicle (root) emerging first, followed by the stem and seed leaves (or cotyledons) emerging later. Radish seeds are a great seed to experiment with because they sprout fairly quickly (3-5 days). Science Process Skills Used In This Activity: Observing Communicating Classifying Measuring Inferring Predicting X X X X Visit the science process skills page for more information on the different skills. I hope you enjoy this activity! If you try it, please leave me a comment to let me know how it goes! You can also post any pictures you take to the Momma Owl group on Flickr. Have fun with science!
Year after year my children are captivated by the seeds that they find, especially in the fall. There are so many interesting characteristics that grab one’s attention and stimulate the imagi…
Fruits and vegetables are not only delicious and nutritious but also essential for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. They are packed with vitamins, minerals,
Check out this engaging lesson on Peer Pressure using an M&M game.
Happy Summer 2012! I have been so busy with new roles in my career but that hasn't stopped me from taking numerous pictures throughout the year...nor my intentions of recording the work that takes place in this environment! I can't wait to share them with you - FINALLY! AND...thank you for being patient! This year I humbly serve as a Head Directress of a preprimary room, a faculty member, and a board member of a Montessori society...exciting roles indeed! In addition, I have been trying to live that well-balanced life that Dr. Montessori stresses so much in her teachings of being a "spiritually-prepared" directress. This means, practicing yoga and meditation everyday, eating more fresh whole foods, and my new love....Zumba! What do you do to stay balanced in your life? { The Water Table } Every environment needs a water table. It is usually the first work I direct a child towards if he seems to be unfocused, agitated, or feeling out of sorts (i.e. tearful morning arrival). It is especially appealing if you tell the child that you have something "oh so special for the water table today." Then, go into your secret stash in your cabinet and get out that bowl of floating fish, pretty shells, boats, a water pump, novel sponges, etc. (you get the drift - pardon the pun)! The water table will be an oasis of peace and purposeful work. To "follow the child" is to give him works that will help him develop the fundamental skill of concentration. Watch the tranquility unfold. We did not have a "real" water table during my first year in this environment. However, a clear storage container worked perfectly! The water table manipulatives were kept in a bucket underneath the table. { ART } I present an Artist of the Month by introducing the artist through a story and a few framed pictures of the artist's works and of the artist. The children love to learn abut the artist and to hear facts from his /her childhood. On the other hand, you could just have one large beautiful work on the wall. You'll know what will appeal to your children. Artists range from Charley Harper, to Paul Klee, Kandisnsky, Mondrian, and so forth... { The Art Shelf } { From L to R: Playdoh Color Mixing, Sugar cube Color Mixing, Paul Klee-inspired work; Playdoh cutting, Paper Strip cutting, Paul Klee puzzle; Geometric Shapes Collage (glued to black paper), Stamping with Paint } The children used the black pencil to draw a self-portrait then placed squares of tissue paper on top. After "painting" water on top of the tissue paper, the tissue squares are removed and the color remains! This Art Shelf is an everyday fixture in the environment. There are two trays (in the bottom drawer which is not pictured). Thus, only two students at a time are able to use materials from the Art Shelf. This teaches patience and turn-taking. When a child chooses this work, he takes a tray and the materials that he needs for his independent art project. { On the Shelf: Children can take up to five pieces of colorful paper, a Paul Klee print, writing pencils, scissors, gluesticks, a pencil sharpener, Outlines of doves for the Poke and Punch activity, regular white paper, two boxes of colored pencils) { Community Project: Planet Earth Mache } I'm so fortunate to have just my kindergartners with me in the afternoons. It's a very special time of community building and enrichment activities. Last year, we made a Paper Mache Globe. We used a large styrofoam sphere (from Michael's), paper mache mix (we just had to add water), and tempura paint. After two days of letting the globe dry, it was time to paint. Each kindergartner poked out a continent to be used as a stencil. I used the stencils to make the outlines of each continent and the children painted the globe with sponge brushes. This globe now greets visitors into our school lobby with a small beautiful sign that says, "Our Home, Planet Earth Made by the Kindergartners" Happy Independence Day! May all beings live in love and freedom! More art to follow!
By Robin Horton Just as with learning to walk, children learn best by doing rather than by watching. Gardening with kids is filled with exploration, education, and fun, allowing them to experience things firsthand and participate in active learning. Working in a garden inspires creativity, develops nurturing skills, and empowers kids to make choices, thus giving ...
First, I should give a “heads-up.” This is not a one-class period lesson. There is going to be a lot of drawing, discussion, and writing. ...
Budding botanists can master the different parts of a seed with this helpful diagram!
This ingredient is hard to replace, but there are a few options! Here’s the best fennel substitute to use for fresh and the dried seed.
“Names of spices: أسماء التوابل: 1. Cumin seeds= بذور الكمون 2. Turmeric = كُرْكُم 3. Cinnamon = القرفة 4. Corriander leaves= أوراق الكزبرة 5. Clove = القرنفل 6. Black Mustard seeds = بذور الخردل الأسود 7. Black pepper = فلفل أسود 8. Bay leaves = أوراق الغار 9. Cardamom = هِيْل”
Learn how to do a fun and easy animal attachment seed dispersal STEM activity ideal for your plant needs science unit.
This hands-on science activity shows kids not only what seeds need to sprout, but also demonstrates what happens when a plant does not receive light. Great experiment for a botany unit!
I hope to help you streamline your instruction by sharing how I combine and utilize my most essential place value resources.
Recently I have been working on a small research paper about the history of Victory Gardens in the US during World War II. As an advocate of edible urban gardening, be that cultivating a grass-less yard to beekeeping to urban chickens, Victory Gardens mark an interesting time in our history where I feel my advocacy
One of the great things about winter is going to farm conferences. A few weeks ago we attended the MO Farm Bureau Young Farmer and Rancher conference. Daddy and I learned lots from our seminars a…
Greens are one of the easiest crops to grow indoors. Grow spinach, lettuce, mesclun mix, mustard or kale and you can begin to harvest micro-greens within a month!
I have been noticing that there are a BUNCH of standards for a variety of grade levels that have to do with ecosystems, food chains, environment and habitat.
Heirloom seeds come from open-pollinated plants that pass on similar characteristics and traits from the parent plant to the child plant. There is no concrete definition that every gardener uses to define heirloom plants. Some people state that heirloom plants are those that were introduced before 1951, while others state that heirloom varieties are those introduced before the 1920s. In general, you should consider heirlooms to be seeds that are possible to regrow and pass on from one generation to the next. One important thing to note for heirloom plants is whether they are organic or non-organic. In most cases, heirloom plants are organic because they are generally only used by small-scale gardeners who do not use pesticide or other harmful chemicals.
