Kindergarten Plant Pot Building Exercise

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The purpose of the Plant Pot Building Exercise was to supplement the Plant Cycle lesson currently within the KatyISD Kindergarten curriculum using a hands-on approach.  In addition, the volunteers stressed the importance of recycling by using newspaper for the source of the paper pots, popsicle sticks for labels, and old water bottles for watering cans.

On April 15, 2013 a team of four to five volunteers visited each of the five Kindergarten classrooms and one Pre-K class. Approximately 100 students participated in this project.  There were three working stations:

Station 1: The students rolled up strips of newspaper approximately 3"W x 24"L using a special paper pot making tool creating a small biodegradable pot.

Station 2:  The students filled the newly made pots with soil and planted one to two seeds of their choice.  Using a permanent marker, the volunteers labeled their pots with the name of the seed, the name of the student, and the date.

Station 3:  The students watered the pots and placed them in a waterproof tray.  Later in the day, the teacher placed the tray outside for sunlight.

A Show and Tell station was also on hand.  It had several varieties of vegetables from one of the volunteer's garden as well as an iPad with photos of that garden.  The Show and Tell station allowed the students to touch and observe all parts of the plant including stems, roots, and any bearing fruit.  An occasional little worm was found in the soil and brought great delight to the children. 

A question and answer session was held with each class after the exercise.