Life of a Plant

This activity is suitable for preschool and elementary school levels. It is particularly important for children who have developed a habit of constantly harming plants by tearing leaves and branches to internalize the concept that plants are also living beings. Therefore, during the activity, it should be emphasized to students that plants, like animals, also have a right to life and existence.

Objectives of the Activity:

leaf Direct children's interest towards nature

leaf Contribute to the awareness of "Nature" and "Environment" among children

leaf Increase children's sensitivity towards living and non-living entities in their surroundings

leaf Ensure that children acquire knowledge about plants and plant diversity

leaf Help children understand the necessity of biodiversity in ecology

leaf Instill in children the motivation to defend the right to life of living beings and to protect their existence

leaf Assist children in developing patient and environmentally friendly personality traits

First the Story

Ruka and Tako were playing hide and seek. While Ruka was looking behind a bush to find Tako, she saw a newly sprouted plant and began examining it carefully.

Tako, who was watching Ruka from his hiding spot, became curious and went over to Ruka.

Ruka? You know you were supposed to find me, right?

I already found you, Tako. Obu was happily jumping where you were.

I guess I need to have a talk with Obu about hide and seek. Anyway... What are you looking at?

A little plant has sprouted here. Do you know what kind of plant it is?

No idea. But whatever it is, it has the right to live. Actually, it would be fun to watch it grow. What do you think?

Yes, it would definitely be nice. In fact, your grandfather told me the other day about how plants grow.

My grandpa is an expert on these things, you know! He told me about it too. First, you take the seed, plant it in the soil, and with regular watering, you let the sunlight do the rest. Then the plant grows big. How big do you think this plant will get?

I think it will grow a little more each day. Maybe... Maybe it'll even bloom. What do you think? Should we come back every day and check?

That's a great idea! Let's give this little plant some water. It might be thirsty.

I already brought some water!

Grandpa!

I saw you two troublemakers paying close attention to something, so I came to check. I heard you talking about a plant, so I brought some water. Would you like to water the plant?

Grandpa, you're amazing! Ruka, come on, let's water the plant.

Okay, Tako, but let me tidy up the soil around it first.

By the way, Grandpa, do you know what kind of plant this is?

Hmm... We can easily figure it out by looking at the leaf. Ahh Tako! Could this be one of your seed bombs that sprouted? Because this plant looks like a peach tree. I'm sure it's one of the seed bombs you threw around last summer!

Really??? I'm so happy right now! Ruka, let's do an activity to celebrate our peach tree. Let's document its growth!

Materials

Activity

leaf For this activity, it is necessary to download the document below and make copies equal to the number of students.

leaf Since the activity will last approximately 1-2 months, it's important for students to keep their papers safe throughout the process. In preschool groups, papers can be labeled with students' names and collected and stored by the teacher.

Students are divided into groups of four. Each student receives seeds of a plant and a printed worksheet. Students moisten a paper towel, place a few seeds inside, wrap it, and place it inside ziplock bags, ensuring the bags are tightly sealed. To allow the seeds to germinate (the duration may vary depending on the type of seeds, beans or chickpeas are recommended), wait for 3-4 days. If the seeds inside the ziplock bags lose moisture during this period, the paper towel can be moistened again. Students are instructed to draw the process in the "Seed" section of the distributed worksheets.

Plant Life

Once roots have formed and developed well, plants are transferred into soil-filled pots. At appropriate times, students are asked to draw in the "Rooting" and "Meeting with Soil" sections of the worksheets. As plants grow, they continue to fill in the "First Leaves", "More Leaves", "Flowering", "Fruits", and finally "New Seeds" sections accordingly. Completed worksheets are displayed on the classroom bulletin board to conclude the activity.

Attention!

The leaves of the plants grown in this activity can be used for the "Plant Museum" activity.

New plant seeds obtained can be stored until the next year or placed in small gift bags labeled "My Seed" to encourage children to give these seeds as gifts to others.

If a large quantity of seeds is obtained, they can be packaged in small gift bags labeled "My Seed" and sold at a festival or school fair to contribute to the class budget.

Gift Bag

Evaluation Questions

leaf Have you ever grown plants before?

leaf Do you think plants have the right to life?

leaf What should we pay attention to when growing plants?

leaf Which seeds did we examine?

leaf What similarities and differences did you notice among the seeds?

leaf What happened before and after the germination process of the seeds?

leaf What did we do to help them germinate?

leaf Which seeds germinated?

leaf Which seeds did not germinate?

leaf Among the germinated seeds, which one sprouted the fastest?

leaf What did you feel while the seeds were germinating?