Kid Science – Seeds the Day!

Looking for activities to fill these early spring days? Little kids were made for dirt and water and it’s a good time of year to start some easy greens like salad greens or kale. You really don’t need much space or experience to start a great science project with some seedlings. We grabbed arugula, kale and some wildflowers and decided to give them a go.

What you need:

1. A willing child who likes to get dirty and make mud.
2. A container with a hole in the bottom or a small outdoor space in the sun.
3. Dirt – potting soil, compost, dirty-dirt. It doesn’t have to be fancy.
4. Seeds. I was doing a quick grocery shop at Sprouts on Sunday and they had a full spinner of seed packs for less than $2 each.
5. Watering can (or you can improvise by poking holes in halfway up a plastic bottle.)

The seed packs will have instructions on them and this activity allows for measuring – how deep and how far apart. It also allows for measuring time: most simple greens will take 7-14 days to sprout. You can mark it on a calendar and monitor your project each day – great for teaching patience! You’ll make observations about your new plant babies and encourage some great eating habits once they’re ready to harvest. This is also a great activity for developing fine motor skills – there’s a little something to getting the tiny seeds into the holes you’ve made for them. 

Want to do more more? Protect our pollinators with bee and butterfly plants and houses, or take part in a release program like in this video. Supporting pollinators is healthy for local wildlife and community gardens. Spring and summer is a time to get inspired and connect with nature!