Planting Grass Seeds

Materials

• cat grass seeds
• plastic cups (with holes punched in the bottom for drainage)
• potting soil
• water spray bottles
• tape
• plastic wrap
• paper towels
• plastic sandwich bags
• camera
• large wall chart, “Our Plants” (chart described in Watch Them Grow learning center)

Key Science Concepts

• Plants grow from seeds.
• There are many different types of plants and seeds.
• Different plants grow from different seeds and bulbs.

Vocabulary

Encourage children to use words like grass, seeds, grow, and sprout. Emphasize science process words like observe, describe, and predict.

Directions

Tell children they will be planting grass seeds in soil and in plastic sandwich bags without soil. Ask, How is this similar to the planting activity you did yesterday? Show them the grass seeds and ask them to compare the seeds to yesterday’s bean seeds. Ask questions such as: How are these seeds the same as those we planted yesterday? How are they different?  

Planting in Soil

1. Have each child fill a plastic cup most of the way with potting soil and plant about a dozen seeds. Gently cover the seeds with soil.  
2. Have children moisten the soil, using the water spray bottle.  
3. Help children write their names on tape and label their cups. Put plastic wrap over the cups and place in the Watch Them Grow learning center. (The plastic wrap will help the soil stay moist. Remove the plastic when seedlings appear.) Ask, Do you think we will be able to see when the seeds first start growing? Why or why not?

Planting in Plastic Bags

Tell children that they will also plant some seeds in plastic bags.   

1. Have children fold a paper towel to fit in a plastic sandwich bag. Then have them wet the paper towel and place it in the bag. Place seeds on the towel (about a dozen) and then close the bag.
2. Help children label their bags and attach them to a bulletin board or window in the Watch Them Grow learning center.

Document Plant Growth

Take photos of one of the cups and one of the bags of the grass seeds in addition to the bean seeds from the day before.  During learning center time, add these photos to Day 2 on the Watch Them Grow chart.

Reflect and Share

Talk to children about what they think will happen to these seeds. Ask, Do you think the seeds will sprout in both the cups and the bags? Why or why not? Do you think we’ll see the first sprouts growing on the paper towels or in the cups? Why do you think so?

Encourage children to think about grass and ask, What are some places where we see grass? What do we do in places where there is grass? What do you like about it?  Have children draw what they predict the grass will look like at the end of the three weeks in their Plant Journals. Help them to label these drawings as predictions.

During Learning Center Time

Have children check the grass seeds in their cups and bags each day during learning center time and draw pictures of the sprouts in their Plant Journals. They can also add the grass seeds to the Seed Museum.