The infants and toddlers have been cultivating and caring for a garden throughout the spring, summer, and into the fall of 2022. The study began in March when sunflower seeds were planted in bags taped to the window. The children were curious and intrigued as they watched the roots, stem, and small leaves form in the clear plastic. The seeds were then transferred to small pots to grow indoors until the danger of frost had passed. As the children tended to the growing seeds, they learned math concepts and vocabulary such as short/tall, large/small, thin/thick, etc. When the weather got warmer the seedlings were moved to the back patio outside of the classroom and planted pumpkin seeds directly in the ground. Throughout the summer months the children learned to work cooperatively to water the plants.
Since the garden grew in a common outdoor space the class was able to share their learning with the other infant/toddler classrooms discussing how to give the flowers gentle touches, so they continued to grow. The growth and development of the sunflowers and pumpkins offered a lot of opportunity for scientific inquiry and observation. As the flowers matured the children and teachers picked them and dissected them to find more sunflower seeds! They were also able to closely examine a mini pumpkin that was grown before gifting to our peers in one of the other classrooms and who helped us care for the garden. This fall the teachers and children cleared the garden of dried leaves and stems getting a closer look at the roots of the vegetation. The plan is to continue this exploration next spring!
