Lesson - The Needs of Plants

Learning from Home: The Needs of Plants

It’s Spring! Lots of things are growing – including your children! Plants are growing too, so here’s a lesson to help your child learn what a plant needs to stay alive.

1. 

Encourage your child to name the 5 things that a plant needs after watching the video. Celebrate the ones he/she can remember. If your child forgets one, try giving them a clue to help them answer. (Eg. “I like to drink this after I exercise. What is it? -water)

2. Help your child write each plant need on 5 small pieces of paper. (water, air, soil, space, light) You can help by sounding out the letters, naming a letter that is still needed, or by letting him/her spell as much as they can on their own even if it’s spelled incorrectly. (“Invented” spelling in Kindergarten is encouraged and very age-appropriate.)

3. Help your child write something a plant does not need on 3 more small pieces of paper. (Eg. Lego, pizza etc.) Ask your child to gather all 8 small pieces of paper, mix them up, and put them into a pile.

4. Now the best part – YOU get to be the “Lethbridge wind.” Blow the pile of small paper pieces all over the table or pick them up and throw them all over the floor! Have fun!
Ask your child to run around and gather all the paper pieces. Challenge your child to sort the words he/she wrote by putting them back into 2 correct piles: what a plant needs / what a plant does not need.

5. Your child would probably agree to do it again if this time your CHILD gets to be the “wind.” (repetition helps your child’s brain recall information) He/she gets to throw the papers all over while you scramble to gather them into piles again! Who can sort the fastest?

6. Art enrichment:

Draw 3 Spring flowers with step-by-step instruction. He/she will need a black Sharpie (or any marker) and a blank piece of paper. (It helps to put another paper underneath so that the marker doesn’t come through onto your table.) Enjoy!