Lessons

The purpose of this lesson is to introduce students to FoodPrints and set expectations for safe, productive, and joyful experiences in the garden and kitchen. Students will explore the garden and kitchen and practice using tools safely in both spaces. This lesson includes work in both the garden and kitchen and can be conducted as two separate mini-lessons or in one longer session.

The purpose of this lesson is for students to understand that we eat different parts of different plants: roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds. Students will search for each of these plant parts in the school garden. They will sort fruits and vegetables by which part of that plant we harvest to eat, and work on observational drawings of edible flowers, such as broccoli and cauliflower. ​

The purpose of this lesson is for students to understand that plants have different parts and that we eat different parts of different plants. Students will also begin to understand the structure and form of each plant part and work collaboratively to sort plants by which part we eat. In the garden, they will observe and draw plants and identify the different parts of edible plants growing there.

The purpose of this lesson is for students to study seeds that fly and understand why and how seeds disperse. Students will closely observe seeds in different ways and design their own plant to explore the various ways that seeds travel. They will also learn different ways to collect and save seeds. This lesson can also be used to support the DCPS 1st Grade ELA Unit Taking Flight.

The purpose of this lesson is for students to understand similarities and differences between leaves within the same family of plants. Students will learn that plants, like humans, share some characteristics but also inherit individual traits. They will study the differences between leaves by making observational drawings in the garden and comparing harvested leaves through Venn diagrams and leaf rubbings. This lesson supports the DCPS 1st grade Science Unit Parents and Their Offspring. 

The purpose of this lesson is for students to explore plant families. Students will study characteristics of different plant families and look for examples of each one in the school garden. They will create observational drawings that focus on the differences between plant families and use seed catalogues to create a poster of plant families. This lesson supports the DCPS 2nd Grade ELA Unit From Seed to Plant and the Science Unit Organisms – Needs and Interactions.