This month we read the book “Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt”. The preschoolers showed a great interest in the book, particularly learning about the various insects that lie hidden under the leaves and down in the dirt. We identified and labelled various different insects and wondered if we could find these species in the nearby forest. Later in the week, we re-visited the story, recalling and labelling the insects once again before preparing to conduct a field study. We hypothesized what we might find here in our very own garden and brainstormed what materials we may need for the study. With our magnifying glasses and shovels in hand we were ready to head off to the forest. We practiced sharing and turn taking while digging together, under the leaves and under the logs looking for signs of life. Millipedes, pill bugs (roly polys) and ants were discovered and excitement filled the air as we collected the bugs in our buckets or felt them crawl on our hands. Some of us enjoyed the experience of simply watching them in their habitats! Through this experience, we explored various language, science and math concepts such as observing, comparing, classifying, predicting, counting, communicating, problem solving. We can’t wait to further build on this interest and explore these concepts further!
Building on our “down in the dirt” study, we explored some planting. A few weeks ago on our trip to the pumpkin patch we were gifted some soil and seeds. We first took a closer look at the seeds using our senses and predicted what kind of seeds they were before collecting the rest of the materials needed in order to successfully plant them. We began by adding a little water to the dry soil before adding the seeds and a little more soil on top. With some research we discovered the seeds were for green beans! We discussed how most plants need 3 s’s to grow - soil, sunshine and seed and placed our plants in a greenhouse near the window so we can watch it grow over the next few months! After just a few days we've noticed some growth happening in our planters and were eager to water it to help the veggies grow some more!
To continue scaffolding on this mini project, our Conestoga College student, Jingfeng provided a provocation in our playground garden beds. For this experience, the children explored natural items that are found on or around the playground and explored digging in the garden to find more insects! Through this activity the preschoolers expanded their vocabulary as they labelled new items and explored them with their senses!
