SEED CLASS - combining lesssons of biology, math and writing

un-sprouted peas

We have a theory that knowledge will only be maintained by a child if they think that knowledge is interesting or useful.  As a society we often do not give our children enough credit for their reasoning, their logic and their motives.  We as a society also seldom make full use of the learning potential.  We as parents are trying to remedy that in regards to our children.

LESSON PLAN:

We have a lot of old garden seeds that for lack of space in the garden we have failed to plant. Last week Mackenson and I started our latest science experiment, sprouting pea seeds in moistened paper towels.  We had a few different kinds of pea seeds, all of different ages.  We are sprouting approximately 100 seeds and our methods are below:

Items needed:
1.  seeds of choice:  we had and used pea seeds.
2.  paper towels
3.  zip-lock bags

Directions:

1.  In a paper towel place 20 pea seeds in a grid type pattern.
2.  Fold the paper towel to keep all of the seeds contained.  We actually placed another paper towel over the top before folding.  Kind of like making a bed with a blanket.
3.  Moisten the paper towel with water, but do not make it sopping wet (only moist).
4. Place moistened paper towel with seeds into a plastic ziplock bag.
5. Seal the bag and place somewhere warm (like on on of the refrigerator).

sprouted peas, some were planted directly into the garden and some into indoor pots for further study.

When we look at the seeds we count how many sprouted after 10-14 days and how many did not.  Since Mackenson is learning fractions, we are going to determine the fraction of seeds that sprouted from our really old seeds compared to the fraction that sprouted of our newer seeds.

Science Lessons:
1.  How does a seed sprout?
2.  What does a seed need before it sprouts?
3.  How does the age of the seed affect sprouting?

Writing/vocabulary
1.  Make the child write the answers to the above science questions.
2.  Introduce vocabulary words of "sprout" and "germination".

Math:
1.  What fraction of the seeds sprouted from the older seeds
2.  What fraction of seeds sprouted from the newer seeds

OTHER POSSIBILITIES:
monocot vs. dicot seeds / plants
anatomy of a seed