Please find enclosed a series of 3 lesson plans for the Foundation Stage.
Week 1: Growing Vegetables.
(Preparing the garden)
Week 2 : Growing Vegetables.
(Planting)
Week 3: Growing Vegetables.
(Caring for plants)
Submitted as part of the STEM project by
Sheila Mullin
St. Mary’s Primary School,
Brookeborough,
Co.Fermanagh
Lesson Plan
Week 1: Growing Vegetables. (Preparing the garden)
Learning intentions: Pupils will
- Understand why caring for the environment is important.
- Experience properties of soil -wet/dry in a digging area.
- Commit to looking after vegetable patch regularly.
Resources needed;
- Interest table materials eg garden equipment forks/ spades/ gloves/ watering can/ wellies/ seeds/ seedlings/ plants/ pictures.
- Vegetable patch for digging and growing vegetables in the school grounds.
- Old clothes and wellies.
- Camera and interactive whiteboard.
Introduction
Children will look at the variety of materials on the interest table, name the items discuss what they can be used for and predict what we are going to do with them.
Show the seeds/ plants and ask children to say what they have in common.
Activity
Bring a group of 5-7 children outside to the vegetable patch and explain that we will be working as a team in our school garden.
Children will share garden equipment and spaceand recognise the need for rules.
Children will dig and prepare the vegetable patch. During digging activities the pupils will experience properties of soil -wet/dry in a digging area using hands and spades usingvocabulary, eg squelch, slimy, crumbly, messy, muddy
Children will observe that creatures are already living in the vegetable patch.
Practise keeping hands clean after each session
Conclusion
Revise briefly what we did.
Link to the fact that we are finding out about the World Around Us.
Look at photographs on the interactive whiteboard taken during the digging session and discuss what the did, what it felt like, what did they see.
Ask children to write a sentence about the picture using Clicker 5.
Discuss that in the next session they will be planting vegetables.
Lesson Plan
Week 2: Growing Vegetables.(Planting)
Learning intentions: Pupils will
- Understand that plants provide food for humans.
- Develop vocabulary associated with gardening and growth, eg soil, bulb, seed, seedling, vegetables names.
- Share factual books about growing things.
Resources
- Interest table with a variety of seedling vegetables eg cabbage, red and green lettuce, spring onions, parsley, tomato plants, soup celery.
- Magnifying glasses
- Prepared vegetable patch
- Old clothes and wellies.
- Camera and interactive whiteboard.
Introduction
Children will look at the variety of seedlings on the interest table, Use magnifying glasses to encourage the children to “look closely” at the plants.
Discuss similaraties and differences eg colour, leaf shape, size, what they feel like.
Investigate if they have a distinctive smell.
Look at pictures of different plants to see if all plants have flowers? Where are the roots?
Activity
Pupils will prepare for planting activity by changing into their old clothes and by putting on gloves.
A group of 4-6 pupils will work with an adult in digging holes to plant their seedlings.
Discuss why care needs to be be taken whilst handling the seedling because of their weak stem, leaves and roots.
Place roots into the ground and fill hole with soil.
Water the plant.
Take photographs during the gardening session.
Conclusion
Pupils will wash their hands after each gardening session to emphasise the importance of good hygiene.
Revise briefly what each group planted.
Link to the fact that plants need care and attention to help them grow.
Look at photographs on the interactive whiteboard taken during the planting session and discuss what the did and what a plant will need to help it grow ie soil, sun, water
Ask children to sort fruit and vegetables using the “My World 3” -sort program.
Encourage parents to join with their children and create a garden plot/containers at home.
Lesson Plan
Week 3: Growing Vegetables. (Caring for plants)
Learning intentions: Pupils will
- Develop an awareness that without care, the plants will not grow
- Commit to looking after plants regularly
- Check regularly to see if the soil feels dry, if so water it.
- Observe plants at various stages
- Develop appropriate vocabulary to describe these changes
- -Record change over time
Resources
- Vegetable patch
- Old clothes and wellies.
- Camera and interactive whiteboard.
- Clipboards, pencils and measuring sticks
- Story books about growth and time
Introduction
Read the story of - The Enormous Turnip and discuss.
Review photographs taken when the vegetables were planted and predict what changes we think might happen over time.
Ask a child to come out and draw something that will help the plants grow well (Sun, rain, watering can).
Activities
Pupils will prepare for planting activity by changing into their old clothes and by putting on gloves.
A group of 4-6 pupils will work with an adult in watering and weeding the vegetable patch.
Children will talk about what changes have happened since the last session.
Take photographs of the growing process.
Measure how the plants are growing.
Make a diary of the growth using photographs
Use the diary at story time to help develop appropriate vocabulary, eg roots, shoots, longer, wider, taller
Make clipboards using laminated card and pegs -children can write or draw their observations
Conclusion
Look at growth diary to observe how the plants have grown.
Talk about the changes that are happening.
Useinteractive whiteboard and Select Growing plants from the Science Clips website. What will this plant need to grow healthily? Ask a child to click to give the seedling water and light. What will happen if it doesn’t get water and light? Observe what does happen.
Click on Labels. Read through the labels. Ask different children to come out and drag the labels to the correct places. Invite children to think of more names for parts of plants and write in a list.