Children watch and respond to a time-lapse video of a bean seed growing into a plant.
The video Watch It Grow shows a real bean seed growing, but in fast motion!
Talk about what’s happening.
Materials
- Watch It Grow video on iPads (1 for Circle Time; several for Learning Center)
- Projector (if available)
Preparation
- Familiarize yourself with the video Watch It Grow.
Directions: Lesson 3
Circle Time: Wrap-Up
- Watch It Grow is a time-lapse video of a bean plant growing. Watch the video together as a class. If possible, use a projector.
- Explain to children that this video shows a real bean seed growing, but the video is sped up so that it looks like the seed is growing much more quickly than it does in real life. Ask children if they can see the plants in their classroom grow. Reinforce the idea that plants grow very slowly. You can notice after a few days that a plant has grown, but you can’t see the plant grow just by looking at it. The sped-up video lets us do that!
- As you watch the video, talk about what is happening. Possible discussion ideas:
- Invite children to describe what they see happening to the plant.
- Do you think plants are living things? Why do you think so? What are some other living things? Is a (dog) a living thing? Why do you think so? What about a (pencil)?
- Ask children to build on what classmates share during this discussion. Who has something to add to (child’s name)’s idea? Does anyone have a different idea?
- Reinforce the idea that living things (things that are alive) need food and water to live. They move, grow, and change over time.
- Watch the video again. What’s happening? Have children narrate what they see, naming the parts of the plant that are growing.
Directions: Lesson 4
Learning Center
- Invite children to rewatch the Watch It Grow video and observe what happens closely.
- As you stop by this center, engage children in conversation to describe what they observe happening and compare it to the growth of their own plants in the classroom. Use discussion ideas similar to those in Circle Time.
Directions: Lesson 5
Learning Center
- Invite children to rewatch the Watch It Grow video and observe what happens closely.
- As you stop by this center, engage children in conversation to describe what they observe happening and compare it to the growth of their own plants in the classroom. Use discussion ideas similar to those in Circle Time.
Circle Time: Wrap-Up
- Watch the Watch It Grow video together. What’s happening? Look carefully! Have children narrate what they see.
- Watch the video again. Have children pretend that they are a growing bean seed and act out the images they see in the video. Plant growth action ideas:
- Curl into a ball to become a small seed.
- Uncurl slowly as the sprout breaks through the soil.
- Hold your head up high (towards the sunlight) and stand up as the sprout straightens.
- Hold arms away from your body as the leaves begin to grow.
Directions: Lesson 12
Circle Time: Wrap-Up
- Watch the Watch It Grow video together. What’s happening? Look carefully! Have children narrate what they see.
- Watch the video again. Have children pretend that they are a growing bean seed and act out the images they see in the video. Plant growth action ideas:
- Curl into a ball to become a small seed.
- Uncurl slowly as the sprout breaks through the soil.
- Hold your head up high (towards the sunlight) and stand up as the sprout straightens.
- Hold arms away from your body as the leaves begin to grow.
