1st grade HOS

This month our first graders are immersed in studying all sorts of life cycles. Insects, chickens, and especially plants! Thanks to our wonderful parent volunteers, all of our first graders were able to participate in a hands on lab experience that let them explore seeds and how they grow!

We started with a seed sort. Each child was to examine a variety of seeds including lima beans, corn, sunflower seeds, and black eyed peas. We made observations about our seeds and compared and contrasted the similarities and differences that we noticed.  We even got to weigh our seeds using a bucket balance!

Next, we took a trip outside. We talked about what plants need to grow. Some of the needs we came up with included soil, water, sunlight and love. Since our school garden is undergoing some construction, we improvised! Our parent volunteers helped each of us to plant our very own lima bean seed. We were given the opportunity to scoop dirt into our own planter. Parents helped us to make a perfect hole for our seeds using our finger. Then we each choose a lima bean that had been soaking in some water. With a little bit of love we covered our seeds and spritzed them with water! We even brought our new plants back to our classrooms where we will continue to observe them as they grow!

When asked what their favorite part of Hands on Science-Plant Edition was, Jenna from Ms. Howard’s class replied “I had so much fun comparing the weight of the seeds using the balance, that was cool!” Aryan in Mrs. Nguyen’s class said “I had fun planting our seed in our own dirt. I can’t wait to see it grow up, up, up!”

We are thankful to have wonderful volunteers that make experiences like Hands on Science possible for our students. This experience definitely sparked some wonder and excitement about plants in these first grade botanists!