Sunflower Pots

Hopefully it won't be too long before Spring arrives, and with it, the thrill of watching plants blossom and grow. Every year we try to plant something with our little ones, and this year we'll be returning to planting sunflowers.

It's not exactly a craft activity as such, but such great fun and so educational too! To extend the fun, we like to turn it into a little competition - who can grow the tallest sunflower!

Equipment

• small plant pots or large paper cups
• compost
• sunflower seeds (giant sunflowers have bigger seeds and are easier for small fingers to handle)
• stickers
• lollipop sticks/pens (to make name labels)
• washing up bowl/water/soap & towel
• list of growing instructions
• certificates (to be awarded in a few months time)

Preparation

Don't forget to buy those seeds and compost!

Method:

1. Show children how to fill pots with compost, poke a hole in the soil & plant their seed.

2. Children decorate pot with stickers. 

3. Give each child a lolly pop stick with their name to poke into the soil, beside their seed. We allow a couple of seeds per child, just in case one doesn't grow.

4. Now give those little hands a scrub once they're done, in the bowl of water.

5. Send each family home with a set of instructions. Hopefully, once the plants are growing well, they'll be able to plant them out into a garden.

6. Ask parents to take a picture of their child with their sunflower in the final week of the competition, and measure it. Pictures can be emailed to the group's secretary, to judge the tallest!

7. Don't forget to give a certificate to all the entrants and a little prize to the winner.