One of the most important things for young kids to learn is where their food comes from—and what better way to teach them than with sprouts! Help your little ones learn about the growth cycles of plants and the magic of germination as they go from seed to their very own salad in less than a week!
At-Home Science Sprouting!
*Designed for Pre-K/K kids from our friends at Scholastic
You’ll Need:
- A variety of seeds (we love alfalfa, radish & mung)
- Jars or bowls, for soaking
- Water
- Tape
- Sproutbags, 1 per seed variety
- Paper/ pen
- Camera (a smartphone will do the trick)
Lesson Plan
- Make a graph by taping each seed type onto a piece of paper and drawing a column below each. Label each column with the name of the seed.
- Write the word ‘sprout’ at the top of the paper and ask your kids what the word means to them, noting their answers. Discuss the differences and similarities between the varied types of seeds on the paper. Record them.
- Explain that each seed will grow into its own plant. Ask kids to measure three tablespoons of their seeds and place them in a bowl or jar to soak overnight (8 hours).
- Follow our Sprouting 101 guide to rinse and drain starting the next morning.
- Most sprouts develop in as little as a couple days. Invite your kids to chart the different phases of growth for each seed bag day by day. Print out photos and tape them to the chart for reference. Ask them what they notice while their sprouts grow and record their observations.
- Invite children to taste each type of sprout and describe its flavor. Did they turn out like they guessed? Bigger? Greener? Spicier? Turn the fruits of their labor into yummy snacks and lunches like salads and sandwiches.
- Clean up is the best part! Harvest your remaining sprouts, refrigerate them, rinse the Sproutbags and hang to dry. That’s it.
Sproutman SproutLab 