October 11, 2022 | Bridget O'Dowd
As the seasons change and the need for jackets and layers is here, we continue to remember the gift of seeds in our world. The Kindergarten has been studying seeds to enhance their descriptive language and further develop their ability to recognize distinctive attributes of various seeds. They compare and contrast seeds as a teacher asks specific questions, “What do you notice about this seed?” “How does it feel?” “Which seed is bigger?” It is exciting to find out that we eat seeds and they don’t grow inside of us!
After cutting open the fruit we bought at Aspen last week, the children have been carefully observing the seeds inside. They noticed that some fruits have many little seeds and other fruits have one big seed called a pit.
Before we begin a new study, we take a moment to think about what we already know about the subject, and what we wonder about it. Here are some thoughts the children shared about what they already know:
You can find seeds in plants. -Wini
Some seeds are hard, some are squishy. -Charlie S.
They can be pointy or round. -Zeke
Some seeds can grow big. -Arturo
They need water to grow. -Amelia
They need sunlight to grow. -Joan
They come in different shapes. -Rebekah
The seeds need water or rain. -Sebastian
Seeds have plant’s food inside. -Ezra
An apple has seeds. -Joseph
The seeds can be squishy or hard. -William
Seeds are different sizes. -Zeke
Nuts are seeds. -Arturo
Flowers come from seeds. -Claire
And here are some wonderings we have about seeds:
If you eat seeds, do they come out of your body?- Charlie S.
How do they grow? -Jack
What happens if you break a seed? -Ezra
How can it grow and where can we learn about seeds? -Claire
Can it still grow if someone steps on it? -Joseph
Can you make mustard with mustard seeds? -Rodrigo
Can you eat a seed before you plant it? -Karina
Can plants grow on their own without anyone taking care of them? -Arturo
Can seeds grow without water? -Sebastian
Can you tell what food grows by what the seed looks like? -Rebekah
Why do some foods have seeds and some not have seeds? -Stella
What is the biggest seed? -Ms. O’Dowd
Children have also been observing and painting seeds this week in paint. Each child is deciding which fruit to paint, a papaya, a dragon fruit, or an apple. Children have also decided whether to paint the outside or the inside of the fruit. It takes careful observation!
Students have searched for similarities and differences of two seeds. First they carefully observed and drew the seeds, then they found at least one thing that was the same about the seeds and one thing that was different! Sometimes it can be very tricky to find a similarity but it helps us to think about all the ways we can describe a seed.
Students have also participated in an activity called “What’s My Rule” in which they find something that is the same about a group of seeds in relation to size, shape, color, and texture. For instance, “all of the seeds are smooth and small.”
Seeds have appeared everywhere: outside, inside, in our food and many more places! Our seed collection continues to grow, and we look forward to more seed sharing as we finish up our study.