Earth Day History s1

Guilford County Schools ACES Program

Weekly Theme: Flower Power – Centers Activities

Art Center

Hand Flowers Trace outlines of the child's hand on paper. Cut out hand shapes. Using a pencil, roll the fingers up so that they curl up. Curl the hand shape vertically into a sort of trumpet/lily shaped cylinder with the finger curls curling outwards. Staple the flower onto a drinking straw, along with cutout leaves. Four or five of these make a nice bouquet.

Flower Pattern Headbands From construction paper, make paper strips to fit around your children's heads. Set out a variety of flower-shaped rubber stamps plus stamp pads in assorted colors. Invite your children to decorate their headbands with color patterns (red rose, blue rose, red rose, blue rose) or shape patterns (tulip-daisy-tulip-daisy). Tape the finished headbands in place when the children have finished.

Twig Flowers Glue or tape twig "branches" onto pieces of construction paper. Give your children small squares of pink and white tissue paper to crumple and glue onto the branches for blossoms.

Cereal Flowers Glue all sorts of colored cereals onto heavy paper or into flower shapes. Add green stems and leaves.

Flower Collage Collect flowers and weeds. Press between paper and books. Dry them for 7 to 10 days. Use the pressed foliage to create collages on construction paper.

Board Game Center

Flower Concentration Cut different flowers and glue onto index cards. Children must find the match.

Flower Match Garden Patch™ (Edu-Play)

Building/Manipulatives Center

Flower Garden Can you design and build a flower garden with blocks or LEGO® bricks?

CATCH Kids® Games

Select student’s favorite activities for the week

July 2008 1 Activity ideas obtained from ACES staff and public domain materials Guilford County Schools ACES Program

Computer Center/Computer Lab

How Does Your Garden Grow http://www.primarygames.com/science/flowers/games/gardengrow/start.htm

Dramatic Play Center

Growing Flowers Have children get in a small "seed" position on the floor. Ask a child to "water" the children with an empty watering can. As they touch the children's backs, the children start to grow. They have to grow slowly. When they reach as tall as they can go, they open their arms like petals.

Five Spring Flowers The first one said, "We need rain to grow!" The second one said, "Oh my, we need water!" The third one said, "Yes, it is getting hotter!" The fourth one said, "I see clouds in the sky." The fifth one said, "I wonder why?"

Then BOOM went the thunder And ZAP went the lightning! That springtime storm was really frightening! But the flowers weren't worried -- no, no, no, no! The rain helped them to grow, grow, GROW!

The Greenhouse In the dramatic play area set up a greenhouse. Get fake flowers as well as garden tools, garden gloves, a watering can, and big hats.

Garden Friends Pop-Up Puppets (Set of 4) - Kaplan

Gross Motor Center

Flower Juggling Using flower beanbags or stuffed flowers, students can practice juggling.

Flower, Flower, BEE! Played just like Duck, Duck, Goose.

Flower Bean Bag Toss A wooden flower with a cut out center and flower shaped bean bags. (Kaplan)

KidzLit ® (K-3)-The Goat in the Rug (3-5)-The Babe and I

Listening Center

Music Center The Gardener Plants the Seeds (to the tune of The Farmer in the Dell)

The gardener plants the seeds. The gardener plants the seeds. High ho the derry oh, The gardener plants the seeds. 2nd verse: The rain falls on the ground. 3rd verse: The sun shines bright and warm. 4th verse: The seeds begin to grow. 5th verse: Flowers grow everywhere.

I'm a Little Seed (to the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot")

I'm a little seed, Brown and fat, I haven't got a front, And I haven't got a back. Plant me in the earth, Give me water each day, I'll grow to be an apple tree, While you play!

I Will Plant a Garden Green (to the tune of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm")

I will plant a garden green, Then I'll watch it grow. I'll dig some holes here in the dirt, In a nice straight row. With a dig-dig here, And a dig-dig there, Here a dig, there a dig, Everywhere a dig-dig, I will plant a garden green, Then I'll watch it grow.

I will plant a garden green, Then I'll watch it grow. In the hole I'll drop a seed, Then each seed I'll sow. With a drop-drop here, And a drop-drop there,

Here a drop, there a drop, Everywhere a drop-drop, I will plant a garden green, Then I'll watch it grow.

I will plant a garden green, Then I'll watch it grow. I'll water each plant one by one, They'll sprout up in a row. With a squirt-squirt here, And a squirt-squirt there, Here a squirt, there a squirt, Everywhere a squirt-squirt, I will plant a garden green, Then I'll watch it grow.

Reading Center

K-3 The Little Flower Girl by Linda Trace Brandon The Flower Girl by Linda Godwin The Flower Man by Mark Ludy Flower Garden by Eve Bunting

3-5 There Is a Flower at the Tip of My Nose Smelling Me by Alice Walker and Stefano Vitale Junie B. Jones is (almost) a Flower Girl by Barbara Park and Denise Brunkus The Falling Flowers by Jennifer B. Reed and Dick Cole Phoebe Flower's Adventures by Barbara A. Roberts

Riddles

What flower do we all have on our face? Tulips! (Two lips)

What did the big flower say to the little flower? Hi Bud!

Why are flowers so lazy? They are always in bed!

What does the letter "A" have in common with a flower? They both have bees coming after them.

If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring? Pilgrims.

What do you call a country where the people drive only pink cars? A pink carnation.

Science and Nature Center

Spring Inside Planting Cut off some carrot tops and put each one in a dish with some pebbles. Add just enough water to cover the bottom of the carrot. Hide the dishes in a place where there is not too much sun. In just a few days, the carrot tops will begin sprouting and turn into plants.

Haircuts Plant grass seeds in a Styrofoam cup. When the seeds sprout, draw a face on the cup and give your “person” a stylish haircut.

Carnation Colors Purchase a few white carnations. Measure water into clear vases or containers. Then add food coloring to each container. Place one carnation in each container of colored water. Monitor each day to see what happens to the petals of the carnations.

Baggie Garden Wet a paper towel, and drop it along with flower seeds into a Ziploc bag. Seal the baggie (leaving air in the bag) and put it in your window and watch the flowers grow.

Greenhouse Glove Use a clear plastic glove (think sandwich shop or food handler’s glove) and place a wet cotton ball in the 4 longest fingers. Drop a different flower seed into each finger and write on the top of the finger the name of the seed. Tape the glove closed at the top to create a greenhouse and hang in the window. Once the seeds begin to grow in their cozy environment, cut the tip off each plastic glove finger and allow the cotton ball and seedling to be transplanted into a pot of soil.

JMG- Teacher/Leader Guide: Ch. 1, pg. 11-Flower Dissection

July 2008 5 Activity ideas obtained from ACES staff and public domain materials