We are happy to share some photographs from this week showing the children planting beans to test their hypothesis that, as living things, plants need water.
As part of our current line of inquiry into “different resources we get from the earth,” we focused this week on water. We first reminded ourselves that resources are things that people can use. When asked whether water is one of Earth’s resources, the children confidently agreed that it is. They then brainstormed many ways people use water, suggesting ideas such as drinking, washing, cooking, playing, and swimming. We expanded our thinking further to consider other living things, and the children were able to explain that animals also need water to survive.
To support this understanding, we watched a short and engaging film clip showing a range of animals—from small wasps to a large cow, and several others in between—drinking from a bucket. The camera filmed from the unique perspective of the bottom of the bucket, which made the experience especially fascinating for the children!
When we discussed plants and their need for water, the children were equally certain that plants also “drink” water. To test this idea, we decided to conduct a small experiment. Each child planted beans in a cup with soil and watered them carefully. The children will continue to water their beans regularly over the coming days.
We also planted a second cup of beans that will not be given any water. Together, we will observe both sets of beans and see what happens. The children confidently predicted that the beans without water will not grow, while the beans they are watering will begin to grow.
As budding scientists, we will continue to observe, compare, and discuss what we notice as our experiment unfolds.
