When teaching seeds, focus on their parts, germination, and dispersal. To do this, kids can grow their own seedlings and participate in a cool STEM challenge.
Ms. Sneed Prepares for Teaching Seeds
Our favorite fourth grade teacher tapped her pencil on her desk. Then she sighed. “This year,” she said to her teaching partner, “I’d like to try some hands-on activities for seeds.”
“Let’s see,” Mr. Frank responded. As he spoke, he flipped through the pages of the textbook. “Parts, germination, and dispersal. Furthermore, our life science standards require kids to know about plant structures and their functions.”
Ideas for Teaching Seed Parts
Ms. Sneed opened her laptop and began tapping the keys. “Seed parts,” she said. “Here we go. In this unit, kids explore monocots and/or dicots. First, the teacher soaks the seeds overnight. Then, the next day, kids observe and record their parts. Afterward, they complete this Venn diagram.”
When Mr. Frank frowned, she knew she’d lost him. “Cotyledons are the large, middle parts of seeds. They store food for the growing seedling.”
“Ah, so they have nourishment before they can photosynthesize.”
“Exactly. Undoubtedly, you’re familiar with monocots and dicots. Monocots have one cotyledon, and dicots have two. For example, corn and wheat are monocots. On the other hand, beans are dicots.”
Mr. Frank’s face brightened. “Yes, I get it. In my opinion, our students should observe both types.”
Baggie Gardens – A Must for Teaching Germination
Ms. Sneed continued searching. Suddenly, she stopped and smiled. “Hey. I forgot all about baggie gardens. Actually, I did this as a kid. You just need baggies, seeds, paper towel, and water.”
Mr. Frank looked at the computer screen. “Oh yeah. We definitely need to do this. As a matter of fact, I’d like my kids to grow both bean and corn seeds.”
“That sounds like fun. However, if you’d like to just use one type, you can watch video clips showing the other.”
Ms. Sneed clicked a link in the unit to show a short time-lapse video on the germination of mung bean seeds.
“Awesome!” Mr. Frank exclaimed. “I could watch this all day.”
“In that case…” His co-teacher clicked another link. This time, they watched a quick video of corn germination.
“Fabulous! But I still want my kids to grow both kinds.”
Growing Seeds on a Bulletin Board
“Actually,” said Ms. Sneed, “I think I’ll grow some too. Check this out. Over the course of a few weeks, the teacher can start a set of seeds each day. Then, in each baggie, kids can see the progression of germination.”
“Wow,” said Mr. Frank. “A growing bulletin board. I’m in!”
Observing Germination
“Of course, we’ll want our students to do more with their seeds.” Ms. Sneed scrolled to some observation sheets. “On the first page, they will draw pictures. To reinforce parts, we can ask them to label. Then, on the second page, they can write what they notice, including measurements.”
“Perfect,” said Mr. Frank. “Additional science skills are built right in.”
Writing About Germination
Ms. Sneed scrolled to a sheet of writing paper. “Next, our students can write sequence paragraphs. Wow, this will integrate science with informational text structures!”
“Great,” replied her teaching partner. “The more I see of this seeds unit, the more I like it.”
Learning About Seed Dispersal
Ms. Sneed paused for a moment and stretched her arms. “Okay, on to the next part of the unit – dispersal. For this, kids watch a video and take notes. It explains how seeds are dispersed by wind, animals, and fire.”
Participating in a STEM Challenge
“Hey,” said Mr. Frank, “look at the next activity. Using what they learned, kids use the engineering design process to create their own seeds.”
“Two options are included,” Ms. Sneed added. “Which would you prefer? Should our students design seeds dispersed by animals or wind?”
Mr. Frank laughed. “Why not do both!”
“Agreed!”
Wrapping It Up
“Okay, just one more thing.” Ms. Sneed pointed to a culminating activity. “Instead of using this as a quiz, we can review together.”
Mr. Frank nodded. “I’d still like to take a grade on it. However, it will just be for completion. Let’s see. First, they label parts of a monocot and a dicot. Second, they explain germination. Third, they tell about seed dispersal.”
“And finally,” his partner said, “they have to tell the main function of a seed. That’s the true purpose of this entire set. Kids must understand that it allows reproduction of a species. Specifically, it disperses, protects, and nourishes an undeveloped plant.”
Enjoy Teaching
Ms. Sneed sighed. Then that slow teacher smile spread across her face. “You know what makes me enjoy teaching?” she asked.
“No. What?”
“A willing teaching partner. Thank you for wanting to do all the active stuff. You know, like germinating seeds on a bulletin board or doing two different STEM activities. It makes coming to work fun.”
With that, Mr. Frank broke into a broad smile. “Okay, then! Let’s start working on other plant parts. For roots and stems, I’d like to try a bunch of hands-on activities. Additionally we should add some stuff on xylem and phloem this year. Then we can work on flowers and pollination. Finally, we’ll wrap it all up with leaves and photosynthesis.”
