Student Instructors First and Last Names Macey Boster, Audrey Dwinnell, Erikka Errhalt, Samantha

Jamieson, Katie Keatley, Emily Woodmansee

Group number Group 9F

Assigned Topic Planting & Watering (in the garden)

Date Friday, March 10, 2017

Location University Christian Church Weekday School
Nutrition Education
University Christian Church Weekday School (UCC WDS)
Lesson Plan

Original (Catchy) Title: Lets Get Up & Grow!

Ready, Set, Grow!

Lesson Overview:
During our lesson, we will be in the garden to discuss planting and watering. Gardening is not only a great way to teach
children about where our fresh fruits and vegetables come from, but also encourages healthy eating! The beginning of the
lesson will include a brief overview of what we intend to teach the children. A song will then be performed to capture the
childrens attention and get them excited to learn about the topic; we will sing through the song twice. Next, we will present a
poster to the children, providing the steps required to get a fruit, vegetable or flower to grow. Once the children have a basic
understanding of planting, we will split into groups of 3 (or 4 for 3-year-olds) and create an egg carton garden that can be
placed in the classroom so children can watch as the plants grow!

Learner Objectives for Education Lesson/ Activity: At the end of the lesson, children will be able to
Identify the steps from seed to sprout (add soil to a container, make a hole, place the seed(s) in the hole, add water, etc)
Describe the difference between soil that that needs water and soil that does not need water (if the soil feels dry, it needs water)
List reasons why water is important to plants

Key Messages & Discussion

Plants need water and soil in order to thrive and grow into beautiful flowers and delicious fruits and vegetables.
Just like people and animals, plants need water too!
Plants absorb water at the roots, so make sure to water the roots, not the leaves.

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Additional Facts for Instructors
We will be going outside to teach the lesson If the weather is not conducive to teaching outdoors, we will move the exciting
activities into the classroom.

Describe how the lesson will be altered for the 3-year-old age group compared to the 4 & 5-year-old age groups. (Include a
brief description here and then explain in the lesson plan format, below, which things will be included, altered or not used for
the 3 year old group.)
For the 3-year-old age group, we will supply an alternative take-home worksheet. Instead of a writing activity, the 3-year-olds
will be provided a colorful page of images that can be cut out (with assistance of a parent) and placed in order from soil to
plant! Additionally, the groups will be smaller (4 groups versus 3) in the younger age group in order to keep the children more
focused with minimal distractions. With this in mind, we will use 4 egg cartons, rather than 3. When it comes to evaluating
what they have learned, the questions for the 3-year-olds will be broad. For example, instead of saying list the steps from
seed to plant, we will say, What is an important step when growing a flower/fruit/vegetable?

Evaluation Measures
During the activity, children will assist the teacher in naming the steps of planting; from seed to sprout.
During the evaluation, children will be asked to list what a plant needs in order to grow. (soil, water, sunlight)
At the end of the lesson, children will be able to identify the importance of watering plants and how to tell if a plant needs
water. (they will feel the difference between soil that is wet and soil that is dry)
*The teachers will end the lesson in a large group (just like at the beginning) and evaluate the children by asking them to raise
their hands one at a time to answer questions.

Materials & Supplies (list all educational materials and supplies, also include a description of the visual item(s) you will use to help
the children understand the lesson)

Lesson plan and instructor guides

CREATE poster showing the steps required to get a fruit, vegetable or flower to grow.
o Step 1: Gather a pot/container (image of a flower pot)
o Step 2: Add soil to the pot/container 3 (image of soil in a flower pot)
o Step 3: Make a hole in the soil, using your finger (image of a hole in a flower pot)
o Step 4: Add a few seeds (Image of seeds in a flower pot)
o Step 5: Cover the seeds (Image of the seeds covered in the flower pot)
o Step 6: Water the soil (Image of a watering pouring water over top the flower pot)
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School Lesson Plan, p. 2
 o Step 7: Watch your plant grow! (Image of a beautiful flower)
Cardboard egg cartons; (6 pack cartons) 3 total for 4 &5s; 4 total for 3s or Biodegradable Pots (15 or enough for each student)
Sharpies; 2 total
Potting soil; 1 bag
Garden trowel; 6 total
Lettuce seeds; 3 packages
Spray bottle; 3 total

Snack Items, if applicable (list items)

o N/A

Activity Supplies (list items, include amounts or unit numbers)

o Cardboard Egg Cartons (6 pack cartons) or Biodegradable Pots
o Popsicle Sticks
o Sharpie to write kids names on the popsicle sticks (to be placed in his/her plant)
o Potting Soil
o Garden Trowel; 6 each
o Lettuce Seeds; 3 packages
o Spray Bottle

Handouts (list handouts)

o Plant Cycle Flash Cards (3-year-olds)
o How To Plant Seeds Worksheet (4 and 5-year-olds)

Additional Resources:
o "Great Gardener Award" certificates printed with each childs name

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School Lesson Plan, p. 3
Time Line Summary
Total lesson should take 20 minutes.

Introduction/Song 3 Min
Lesson 5 Min
Activity 7 Min
Snack (if applicable) 0 Min
Conclusions 2 Min
Evaluation 3 Min
Total 20 Min

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School Lesson Plan, p. 4
Important: Complete the lesson plan below. Include the information in NARRATIVE form in the lesson plan so that any
other student could review it and easily teach the lesson without reading additional information or completing further study.

Lesson Plan Format

Time Lesson Format Key Messages & Discussion Instructor

1 min Introduction Teachers will begin the lesson (in large group) by introducing themselves to All Student
the students Good Morning Everyone! My name is Katie! Instructors

The last student instructors to introduce themselves will provide a brief

overview of what the kids are going to be learning about.

"So, raise your hand if you like to garden. Awesome!" "Well, you are in
luck because we have such an exciting lesson for you today all about
planting and watering in the garden! To get started, we will start with a
song. Are you ready?! Great!
2 Min Song (each lesson should Okay, we are going to sing through the song twice, so dont worry if you All Student
begin with a song dont get it right away. Instructors
pertaining to
food/gardening/nutrition) "Dig the Earth"
(To the tune of Row Row Row Your Boat)
Dig, dig, dig the earth
(make digging motion)
Then you plant your seeds
(pretend to drop seeds)
A gentle rain
(Flutter fingers down)
And bright sunshine
(Circle arms above head)
Will help your flowers grow
(Hold one arm parallel to ground and move other arm up behind it with

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School Lesson Plan, p. 5
 fingers extended to represent a flower growing)
12 min Lesson Content Wow! You all are rocks stars! So, now that we are all warmed up, let's learn Erikka
Also explain in this about planting and watering!
section what parts of the
lesson will or will not be Who likes to help in the garden? What are some of your favorite things to
used with the three year grow? What are some of the things a plant needs before it can grow?
old class or parts that
will be different. What great answers! I can tell that you all spend a lot of time in the garden!
Explain During the lesson (to take place in the garden), we will be going over a All Student
colorful poster that illustrates the process a seed goes through to become a Instructors
flower, vegetable or fruit. We will explain that when planting, the seed will
need to be in the soil in order to grow.
Audrey &
To illustrate this to the 3-year-olds, we will describe it as a seed that needs Macey
to be tucked under the covers; the covers being the soil. We will talk about
3 very important things a seed needs before it can sprout; soil, water and
sunlight.

When it comes to watering the plants, the children will be asked to feel soil Emily
when it is dry and then again when it is wet. We will discuss with them that
they can feel the soil to determine if the plant needs more water or not. If it
is damp, the plant is good to go; if it is dry, time to water! The student
instructors will then comment that sometimes the sky waters the plants for
us! When it rains in the garden, the plants do not need to be watered
because the raindrops did it for us! How cool is that?!
Questions/Answers Soil Question: Emily
Q: How does the soil feel?
A: Clumpy/Warm/Cool
Education Activity We will stay in the garden for the educational activity --> planting lettuce All Student
seeds! The children will be divided into 3 groups (4 groups for the 3-year- Instructors
olds) to plant their own lettuce. Using 3 separate egg cartons, each group
will have the chance to scoop out soil, place it in the egg carton, dig a hole

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School Lesson Plan, p. 6
 (using there finger), plant a seed, cover it up (tuck it in), and give it a few
sprays of water.
Snack Activity N/A
(if applicable)
2 min Conclusions What a fun day in the garden! Your plants look amazing! All you have to Samantha
do now is put them in your classroom window and watch them grow!

Now, we are going to all come together again as a large group again to talk
about what youve learned. Dont forget to raise your hands.

3 min Evaluation What does a plant need to grow? Samantha &

Q: What does a plant need to grow? Erikka
A: Soil, water, sunlight
Q: Do we have to water our outdoor plants everyday even when it rains?
A: No, the rain does it for us!
How can we tell if a plant needs water?
What did you learn today?
Q: How can we tell if a plant needs water?
A: It will feel dry
Q: What would you do if your plants soil felt dry?
A: Water it

Thank you planting and watering with us today! I hope you had as much fun
as we did! See you next time!

Bibliography:
List resources and references used for lesson content.
http://www.preschooleducation.com/sgarden.shtml
http://growing-minds.org/documents/watering-the-garden.pdf
https://www.education.com/worksheet/article/plant-life-cycle-cards/
http://files.havefunteaching.com/free-worksheets/science/seeds-plants-worksheet-1.pdf
http://teaching2and3yearolds.com/planting-seeds-with-kids/
https://www.kidsgardening.org/gardening-basics-wise-watering/
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School Lesson Plan, p. 7
Group Tasks Assigned Student(s) for Task Due Dates and Timeline

Assign Group Leader Samantha Jamieson February 1st

Create Lesson Plan (INDIVIDUALS and then GROUP)

Individual January 27th

Create Childrens Educational ____________________ _________________________________

Handout (Infant and Child student)
Remember these are preschoolers!
These materials should be something that parents or teachers could read to the children.
There should be plenty of attractive pictures but still enough text to educational. Do not plagiarize.

Create Parents Educational ____________________ _________________________________

Handout
(Infant and Child student)

Initial meeting with Dr. Hill All Students February 13th

to have materials/lesson plan
approved.
(See due dates for meeting. Most, if not all of the group members should be at the meeting.)

Turn in hard copy of FINAL Samantha Jamieson February 5th

materials to Dr. Hill

Turn in final copies Erikka Errhart February 5th

on D2L.

Create final binder All Students May 1st

and turn in to Dr. Hill

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School Lesson Plan, p. 8
Additional tasks ____________________ _________________________________
____________________ _________________________________

Schedule Group Meetings Date Purpose

1/27/17 Review Lesson Plans
2/3/17 Finalize Lesson Plan
2/17/17 Create Poster
2/24/17 Shop for Materials
3/3/17 Rehearse Lesson

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School Lesson Plan, p. 9