Simple Plant Experiment for Kids
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Get startedPlanting your own vegetable garden not only ensures you have fresh produce but it can also create a hands-on learning opportunity for young children. By teaching your children the basics of gardening, they can discover how life begins and what plants need to survive. You can make gardening a weekly activity to create lessons on healthy habits and sustainability while reaping all the tasty benefits once the plant is ready to eat.
One simple project is to take a lima bean (or any dried bean seed) and grow it in a bag. Kids will be able to monitor its progress daily and see each step of the life cycle!
Materials needed:
- Plastic zipper bag
- Paper towel
- 2 - 3 Lima beans (or any dried bean seed)
- Tape
- Water
- A window with direct sunlight
- Time
Instructions:
- Pre-open zipper bag so there is room
- Take a paper towel and wet the whole piece with water
- Fold the paper towel so it is three times as big as the bean
- Put the wet paper towel in the center of the bottom of the zipper bag
- Take one bean and try to put on the front of the paper towel and another bean on the other side of the paper towel in the bag
- Tape the bag to a window that receives a lot of direct sunlight
- Leave for a few days and check to see what is happening
- If your seed isn’t sprouting after 5 days, it may have spoiled so try with another bean seed
- After 8 days, it should be ready to pot
The best part of this project is that you can see the bean sprout from its seed shell and grow into a big leafy plant. Kids can see every step of growth in the clear bag. To make this project even more impactful, have your children draw the plant every day and they can really focus on what is happening. Good luck and happy growing!