Thinking About Gardening, Plants and Bringing On Spring!

In the Grade 3 curriculum here in Ontario we study plants and soil, and I love it. I've had so much fun study plants, planting seeds, and digging in the soil with my students.

Here's a couple sites if you are interested in square foot gardening at home or with your students:
Square Foot Gardening

Canadian Gardening

Last year, we made a trip to the bookstore to pick up a few books to help with our learning. The first on our list was Square Foot Gardening with Kids by Mel Bartholomew. He also has a number of adult versions that provide a great deal of information about this type of gardening. What I liked best about this book was that it had a bunch of science explanations, diagrams and activities that could be used to integrate home and school gardening.

I love using picture books to help reinforce the ideas we are learning about in Science, here are some good ones.

And Then It's Spring

This book is written in verse and the illustrations are super cute. I love that it totally matches everyone's feelings right now of waiting, waiting, waiting for all the brown and yucky to finally turn to green!

The Tiny Seed

This book is sooooo cute! It details the journey of a seed through the seasons until it finally lands on the ground and is able to grow. In true Eric Carle fashion the illustrations are amazing and my daughter has fallen in love with this book. We've already read it three times since yesterday!

Tom's Tree

I am in love with this book! Tom plants a seed. Then he waits, and imagines, and waits and imagines....but the tree takes so long to grow that Tom grows up first!

The ending though...so sweet and touching. A must read.

If You Hold a Seed

The illustrations in this book are incredible. Beautiful! The story that goes along with it is inspiring and could be used for many activities in the classroom not just plants and science.

I highly recommend this one!

I still have a few more books on my wish list....but I didn't want to overwhelm my husband by spending so much all in one day!

Once There Was a Seed

Isabella's Garden

And the Good Brown Earth

How Does a Seed Grow?

I'm also looking into buying some butterfly larvae that we can watch grow, build a chrysalis, and emerge as a butterfly! This spring is going to be fun.

I'd love to hear about any experiences people have had growing food and gardening with kids or raising butterflies. The more tips the better!

Do you have a great plants, seeds or butterfly product I just have to see? Leave me a comment and I'll be sure to check it out. 

All photos are taken from the Chapters.Indigo website.