Children can learn so much if they can patiently and systematically observe a seed as it sprouts and grows over the course of several weeks. Of course, they can learn much more if they can follow this process through an entire growing season and watch and document the transformation from seed to flower and back to seed. However, in any case, whether this process begins in a dampened paper towel (stored in a plastic bag and taped to the classroom window) or in a tray of peat pots or outside in a raised garden bed, your students should be encouraged to track these amazing transformations and to document their discoveries.
For young children, observations are best discussed, illustrated, and written (to the degree possible) as a whole class or group project. However, for third graders and above, student-illustrated notebooks or simple charts (such as those included here) can prove useful. Here’s a basic template for recording the remarkable metamorphosis of a seed into a growing, photosynthesizing plant. Happy sprouting!
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