All about Sunflowers!

Sunflowers!

Last week each kindergartner planted a sunflower seed in a plastic cup.  We discussed what the seed would need to grow and how we would document its growth in our writing journals.

We read a non-fiction book about the life cycle of a sunflower and then used this fabulous activity sheet to diagram the parts of a flower (could have made it a sunflower if I'd had enough seeds!)  Go here to find the diagram for your class -  http://littlestarslearning.blogspot.com/2012/05/cupcake-liner-garden-theme-craft.html

We then had a discovery center where children could look closely at a variety of seeds with a magnifying glass, comparing and sorting them as they wished.  Those basil seeds are tiny...and garbanzo beans are bumpy!

With squares cut from plywood and some joint compound (both very inexpensive at Lowe's or Home Depot), children used their fingers to carve out sunflowers.  We let these dry overnight and then painted them with acrylic paints.  With a little loop of ribbon stapled to the back, these will make great Mother's Day gifts!

Next we'll look at Van Gogh's Sunflowers to inspire us to write sunflower poems to add to the gift.    

                                                                                       


Sunflower House, by Eve Bunting, is a fun rhyming story about a child who plants sunflowers in a circle to create a place to play.  Children loved this book and imagined their own sunflowers as the beginning of something bigger in their own yards!