Best Ideas for Seed & Plant activities for preschoolers

Are you having trouble finding plant and seed activities or projects that are simple to set up and age-appropriate for your science center for preschoolers?

You are probably familiar with the old celery experiment. You know, stick a stalk of celery in water, add food coloring, and watch the color travel up the stick. There is nothing wrong with the experiment. I just want to let you know that there are many additional exciting ways to study plants with your kids, and they all are pretty easy. Let’s take a closer look

Spring is the perfect time to learn about plants. So, today, I am sharing LOTS ideas for plant activities for preschoolers. I’m sure they will have so much fun exploring science.

From a green bean investigation to additional hands-on seed and plant activities, I’m sure you will find some fun ways to explore the world of plants with your kids.

Green Bean Investigation

A great way to explore the natural world with your kids is to conduct an investigation with them. You can investigate any fruit or vegetable to learn about plants and seeds.

I will show you how to investigate a green bean, but you can use the same idea with different plants. The printables pictured below are part of my Plant & Seed Investigation set.

Pick up some bulk green beans in the produce department of your grocery store. The bulk variety is generally less expensive than those prepared and ready to steam. If you can find different colors or varieties of green beans, that would be really cool.

I was fortunate to spend lots of time in our garden with my parents as we grew much of our own food, but many kids have not had this experience. In fact, some kids might be surprised to learn that green beans grow on a plant, are picked, and then shipped to a grocery store or market. Each child can select a green bean and can conduct a fun & easy science project for your preschoolers.

Record Appearance of the Green Bean

Each green bean is unique in appearance. Kids can begin their study by studying their green bean and making a record of its appearance in their investigation book or on a blank piece of paper.

They can draw or trace their bean and can record its color. Does it have a stem on it? Does it have any spots or blemishes? They can make a record of those too.

Kids can then indicate the shape and texture of their bean.

If your kids are really good at noticing differences between green beans, you can play a game with them. After each child studies his or her bean, mix a few of them together. Can they identify THEIR bean?

Measure the Green Bean

Scientists also study things by measuring them. Kids can measure their green beans in a few different ways.

You can provide a kitchen scale so that kids can weigh their beans. If you prefer, you can also provide a balance scale, and kids can compare their bean’s weight to marbles or blocks.

This is a great way to introduce valuable math skills in a fun, meaningful way. In addition to weighing, kids can measure the length of their bean. Provide counting cubes, a measuring strip, or cut a piece of yarn so that it is the same length as their bean.

Make it into a sorting activity and ask kids to sort their beans by length from shortest to longest.

Density

Provide a small container of water so that kids can test whether their bean sinks or floats. Don’t forget to ask your little scientists to make a hypothesis first.

Count the Seeds

Your kids may be surprised to learn that green beans have seeds inside. Show kids how to cut their beans open with scissors and let them find and count all the seeds inside. What a fun way to work on counting with your little learners!

Green Bean Taste Test

Kids can put their taste buds to work as they try green beans. Clean and cut up some green beans and let them try them raw. They might be surprised by how they taste.

You can also let them sample canned green beans, dehydrated green bean chips, or any favorite recipe you want to share with them.

Record the results on a class graph, and you can analyze the data with them.

Plant Activities for Preschoolers – Planting Seeds

Looking for even more plant activities for preschoolers? The best way to learn about plants and seeds is to plant little seeds and watch them grow.

Which seeds are the easiest to plant?

When you go to buy seed packets, you may be overwhelmed by the variety of seeds available. You don’t need a green thumb when you select easy-to-grow seeds. Some of the easiest seeds to plant with kids are green beans, cucumbers, zucchini, and pumpkins.

While grass grows from a tiny seed, grass seeds can also be fun to plant. But I will warn you that there are different types of grass in different parts of the country. I have found that Northern grasses sprout and grow quickly, while I had a more difficult time growing grass with Southern grass varieties.

Plant a Seed in a Pot

Use little peat pots or containers from your recycling bin to plant seeds with your kids. Let kids use a spray bottle to keep the soil moist. Spray bottles are exciting for kids, so they make a fun fine motor activity.

Place the pots in a sunny window and encourage kids to observe their plants and record their observations.

Observe Sprouts in a Plastic Sandwich Bag

Here is a fun and easy way to help your kids observe the germination and the development of leaves and stems. They can place and observe seeds in a plastic sandwich bag. I think it’s so cool to get an up-close look at a seed sprout!

Fold a paper towel into a small square and spray it with water until moist. Place a couple of seeds on top of the towel and place them in a plastic bag. Hang them in a sunny window or from a clothesline, and watch for the seeds to sprout. Encourage your kids to observe and document the changes.

Plant a Seed in a Bag

I found some little plastic bags in my supply closet, and they were perfect for plant observation activities. Spoon a little potting mix into the bag, and then poke a seed into the soil. Ensure that the little seed is at the front of the bag so your young kids can see all the action.

Hang the open bag in a window where it is easy for little ones to observe it. Use a pipette to add water as needed.

The Life Cycle of a Plant

As you examine plants and seeds, you can talk about life cycles. All living things go through stages of life. A green bean plant starts as a seed, progresses to seed with root, then to a seedling, a plant, a flowering plant, and finally, green beans are produced.

Plant Activities for Preschoolers – Seed Activities

Plants start as seeds, so when studying the world of plants, it is always fun to study seeds.

Study Seeds

Kids can search for the seeds in the fruits and vegetables that they eat. They enjoy examining the inside of tomatoes, green peppers, and pumpkins.

Kids can also get some cutting practice as they cut apart green beans to find the seeds inside.

Seed Sorting

Sorting Pictures: Provide pictures of fruits and vegetables. Can you see the seeds?

Encourage kids to sort the pictures. Here are some ideas:

• by color
• foods that they like and foods that they don’t like
• large seeds and tiny seeds
• seeds that we eat and seeds that we don’t eat

Sorting in the Sensory Bin: Seeds are a great addition to your sensory center. Add a variety of seeds or beans to your sensory bin or table. Kids can sort the black beans from the lima beans from the garbanzo beans.

Seed Identification & Sorting

Studying seeds is a great preschool plant activity. You can show kids that there are many different types of seeds. A bean seed looks very different than a cucumber seed.

Provide a variety of different types of seeds for kids to examine. Can they identify them and sort them?

Plant Themed Playdough Activities

I love putting together playdough trays and playdough kits. Mix up some brown playdough for a plant-themed playdough tray for open-ended play and learning.

You can also mix in fun materials into your playdough. Try adding soil to the mixture, or even bird seed (but beware of using bird seed with children who have allergies)

Plant, Seed & Garden Themed Books

Find a great list of plant and garden-themed books for your kids. My personal favorite is Mucha! Muncha! Muncha! Kids in preschool LOVE the book.

Flower Investigation

If you want to focus your plant and seed study on flowers, your kids can conduct a flower investigation.

PURCHASE THE PRINTABLES

Are you ready to help set up some plant activities for preschoolers? This set of Plant Investigation Printables will help you create easy-prep plant activities for your preschoolers. Check out the set in my store today.

Do you prefer to shop at TPT? Purchase the Plant & Seeds Investigation or the Investigation Bundle at my TPT store.