Songs

 

1. Planting a Seed Tune (I'm a Little Teapot)

I plant a little seed in the cold, cold ground.

Out comes the yellow sun, big and round.

Down come the raindrops soft and slow

Up comes the flower grow, grow, grow!

2. The gardener plants the seeds Tune (The farmer in the dell)

The gardener plants the seeds.

The gardener plants the seeds.

High ho the derry oh,

The gardener plants the seeds.

2nd verse: The rain falls on the ground.

3rd verse: The sun shines bright and warm.

4th verse: The seeds begin to grow.

5th verse: Flowers grow everywhere.

3. Sing a song of flowers tune (sing a song of sixpence)

Sing a song of flowers, flowers all around

Flowers that are growing, growing in the ground

Flowers of each color make a pretty view

Red and orange and yellow

And blue and purple too!

4. Up Pops the Flower Tune (Pop! Goes the Weasel)

We plant some seeds in the dirt.

The rain falls in a shower.

The sun comes out, and what do you know?

Up! Pops a flower!

5. Will My Flowers Bloom? Tune (Wheels on the Bus)

The seeds from the pack go in the ground,

In the ground, in the ground,

The seeds from the pack go in the ground,

Will our flowers bloom?

The rain from the sky goes drip, drop, drip,

Drip, drop, drip; drip, drop, drip,

The rain from the sky goes drip, drop, drip,

Will our flowers bloom?

The sun above is bright and hot,

Bright and hot, bright and hot,

The sun above is bright and hot,

Will our flowers bloom?

Our little seeds are sprouting fast,

Sprouting fast, sprouting fast,

Our little seeds are sprouting fast,

Look! Our flowers bloomed!

 

Crafts

 

1. Paper Plate Gardens

Glue green Easter grass on half the plate and glue green pipe cleaners on top of the grass. Cupcake liners on top of the pipe cleaners. Add Leaves with construction paper.

2. Blossoms

Sponge paint blossoms on crayoned tree trunks drawn on construction paper.

3. Growing Garden

Cut petal shapes and circles out of various colors of construction paper. Give each child a circle and several petal shapes. Have the children glue their petal shapes to their circles. Measure each child and make a green construction paper stem that is the same length as the child's height. Write each child's name lengthwise on his or her stem their age and height. Add the children's flowers to their stems. Cut leaf shapes out of green construction paper and attach them to the stems.

4. “Plant a Little Kindness” plant marker -This little plant marker would look great in a painted pot filled with flowers.

Cut out a leaf shape from green fun foam and a red oval for the ladybug from red fun foam. Glue the leaf to a large craft stick. Glue on small black foam circles for spots and a head onto the ladybug body.  Glue black pipe cleaner onto to back of the ladybug for antennae.  Glue the ladybug onto the leaf. Write “Plant a Little Kindness” on the leaf.

5. Flower Crown

Cut a slit through the center of the paper plate, leaving about an inch at the edges of the plate. Cut three more slits. Bend the triangles formed by the cuts upwards, forming leaf-like shapes. Paint the crown light green. Let the paint dry. Cut out some construction paper or tissue paper flowers for your hat. Any shapes will do - let your imagination run wild and invent your own flowers. Glue flowers to the crown.

Optional: Decorate it with glitter and/or staple two long ribbons of crepe paper to your beautiful hat.

6. Egg Carton Tulips

Cut flowers from the cup sections of egg cartons. Paint cartons any color you wish. Use pipe cleaners for the stems and construction paper for leaves. Pom-poms could be used for the centers.

7. Vegetable Basket Craft

Cut out a basket using any color construction paper. Cut out vegetable shapes and have the children glue the vegetables into the basket.

8. Watermelon Craft

Cut out a half circle from red paper. Then cut out a rim out of green paper. Have children glue the green rim to the red half circle.  Have the children glue on black seeds.

9. Seed Squiggles

Squeeze glue onto wax paper to make a design approximately 4" to 5" long. Have them sprinkle the seeds onto the glue. Let them dry, shake off any extra seeds into a bowl. Have the children gently peel their seed picture from the wax paper. Tie a string to each and hand from the ceiling.

10. Potato Head

Scoop out some of the potato before you give it to the children. Let the children make a face with the pipe cleaners, yarn and eyes. When they have finished add the soil and grass seed, when the grass grows your potato has hair.

 

Circle Activities

 

1. Beans

You will need a bag of white beans roll of paper towels and one zip lock baggie for each child. Wet one paper towel and out in the baggie then put in 5 beans. Zip up the baggie make sure to leave air in the baggie. Hang in your windows and watch them grow. Later you can transplant to pots and send home!!!! Let me know how this turns out for you.

2. The Little Red Hen Felt Activity

The little red hen wants to make bread but the cat, pick and duck won’t help.  So the hen does it all by herself until the end when the cat, pig and duck want to eat the bread.  But the hen won’t let them because they didn’t help.  Follow steps in making bread (Plant seeds, wheat grows, make into flour, make into dough and then bread)

3. Flower Sequence Cards

Planting to growing a flower. Show the children how a flower starts to finish.

4. Feely Box

Make a feely box with parts of a tree inside, bark, seeds, flowers, stems. etc.

5. In My Little Garden

In my little garden with a lovely view.

Sunflowers are smiling, one and two.

In my little garden by the apple tree,

Daffodils are dancing, one, two, three.

In my little garden by the kitchen door,

Roses are blooming, one, two, three, four.

In my little garden by the winding drive,

Violets are growing, one, two, three, four, five!

(Children hold up a required number of fingers each time. Show the children pictures of the different flowers that are mentioned in the rhyme.)

6. Garden Words

Introduce to the children garden words such as seeds, water, sun, rake, soil, watering cans.

7. Four Little Flowers

For a flannel board - Cut 4 flower shapes out of felt and place them on a flannel board. Let the children take turns removing the flowers as you recite the following poem: 

Four little flowers I did see. 

I picked one, then there were three. 

Three little flowers, pretty and new. 

I picked another, then there were two. 

Two little flowers out in the sun.

I picked one more, then there was one. 

One little flower left in the sun. 

I picked it too, then there were none.

8. What Type of Garden?

Introduce to the children the different types of gardens. (Flower, Fruit and Vegetable)

9. Plant a Flower

Give each child a paper cup, some soil, some seeds. Let them plant their own flower and then water them. Watch them grow. Explain to the children what the flower needs to grow.

10. Tiny Strawberry Garden

You will need: empty half-gallon-size milk carton, pointed scissors, towel, dirt, strawberry plant, and water.

Cut top off milk carton. Punch four holes in bottom for drainage. Cut holes 1 1/2" (3.75 cm) in diameter at different place on each side of the carton. Fill carton with soil. With finger, depress soil inside each hole, and carefully work strawberry roots through hole and into soil. Press additional dirt firmly around roots. Water plants well. Strawberry garden should be placed in sunny spot outside so that they can be pollinated by bees. Once flowers begin to drop their petals, move strawberry garden to sunny window and keep soil moist.

 

Stories

 

1. Mrs. Rose's Garden by Elaine Greenstein

When Mrs. Rose grows a prize crop of vegetables guaranteed to win all the blue ribbons at the County Fair, she is inspired to a generous act involving the gardens of her friends.

2. Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert

A mother and child plant a rainbow of flowers in the family garden.

3. A Garden for Miss Mouse by Michaela Muntean

Miss Mouse plants a garden which soon becomes more than she can handle.

4. Counting Wildflowers by Bruce McMillan

A counting book with photographs of wildflowers illustrating the numbers one through twenty.

5. The Everyday Garden by Cynthia Rylant

Describes different fruits and vegetables that grow in the garden. The garden likes sunshine and plenty of rain to grow. After the fruits and vegetable have grown we pick them and give them away.

6. How My Garden Grew by Anne & Harlow Rockwell

With pride and pleasure, a little girl describes growing a garden all by herself

7. Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert

A father and child grow vegetables and then make them into a soup.

8. Grandpa's Garden Lunch by Judith Caseley

After helping Grandpa in the garden, Sarah and her grandparents enjoy a lunch made from home-grown vegetables.

9. Alison's Zinnia by Anita Lobel

Alison acquired an amaryllis for Beryl who bought a begonia for Crystal--and so on through the alphabet, as full-page illustrations are presented of each flower.

10. The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss

Despite everyone's dire predictions, a little boy has faith in the carrot seed he plants

 

General Activities

 

1. Play Dough Gardens

We add silk flowers, flowerpots and different containers to our play dough area when working on the theme gardening. The kids get a kick out of planting their flowers again and again and the play dough holds the silk flowers nicely.

2. Vegetable Garden

We filled our sensory table with potting soil. Then we added a variety of plastic vegetables and fruits and gardening tools. The kids had a great time working in their fruit and vegetable garden!

3. Garden

Plastic flower pots and some fake flowers and put them in dramatic area. I also add a watering can, some plastic garden tools, big garden hat and garden gloves. The children love playing with this and enjoying arranging the flowers.

4.  Outside Garden

Let the children help you plant flowers in your garden outside. Talk about the steps it takes to have a flower grow. (Dig a hole, plant a seed, cover the hole, water and watch it grow)

5. Vegetable-Fruit Stand

Set out a variety of plastic fruits and vegetable. Set up a shopping area with cash registers, and play money. Provide a balance scale for children to weigh the produce.