Monday, September 21, 2020

LEAVES WITH STEAM

Take advantage of the upcoming season with these science activities using leaves.


Leaf Hunt
Ask each child to get a lunch sack and collect 2 or 3 leaves from their yard for homework. Use this for sharing time by encouraging the children to describe their leaves.  Talk about the shapes, colors, likenesses, differences, etc. 

Research
Do a little research on the internet. Can children match up their leaves with those online to identify which tree they came from.

Leaf Rubbings
Lay a sheet of paper on top of a leaf. Remove the paper from an old crayon and rub the side over the leaf to make a print.



Leaf Book 
This is a book that children might want to make with their parents.  Let each child find "favorite" leaves and preserve them by placing the leaves between newspaper and putting a book on top overnight. Place each leaf in a zip baggie. Encourage children to dictate or write a sentence about their leaves.
*Put several baggies together to make a book.


I Wonder Why?
Brainstorm why leaves turn colors and fall off trees in the fall. Have children do a little research with their parents and report results in class the following day.

Deciduous Trees (Sandra Kelley)
Tune: "Do Your Ears Hang Low?"
Do your leaves fall down?
Do they tumble to the ground?
Do you lose your leaves in the fall?
Then you are deciduous that we know
because in the fall your leaves all go!

*What's the difference between deciduous trees and evergreen trees? Invite children to take a nature walk with their families and identify both types of trees.