We are plant explorers!
Key Stage 1: year 1
Take a journey around our Gardens and discover through observation, hands-on activities and role play the wide variety of plants and trees growing there. Learn their names and become a mini plant expert for the day.
- Learning Outcomes
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Pupils will be able to:
- Identify and name a variety of common wild and garden plants, including deciduous and evergreen trees
- Identify and describe the basic structure of a variety of common flowering plants, including trees
- Work scientifically by observing closely, using simple equipment e.g. magnifying glasses
- Use their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
- Activities
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A day’s programme does not necessarily include all the listed activities and can be adapted to suit individual needs and requirements. Normally we fit in four to five activities during your visit.
Activities Description and learning objectives Bee game Learn about the life cycle of a plant and the different plant structures (from roots to petals to seeds again) Bud hunt (Jan-March) Make careful observations about the changes occurring to plants in the Spring. Can you spot the buds, leaves and flowers? Colour sticky strips Create a sticky strip with different coloured petals and leaves found in the gardens. An art activity to take away. Giant caterpillar game Imagine you’re a caterpillar and using your sense of touch work out which parts of the plant you would eat and which parts you wouldn’t. Note: this is a blindfold game of trust. Leaf match Carefully observe the similarities and differences between the leaves from our common trees. Can you work out which are from evergreen and deciduous trees? What are the clues? Leaf slides Let’s take a closer look at different leaves and compare their similarities and differences. What do the veins do and why do they look different according to different leave shapes? Leaf sort Collect a wide variety of leaves. How might we sort them? How about shape, colour, size, and type (evergreen/ deciduous)? Anything else? Meet a tree Use your senses to guide you! Can you work out which tree you’ve just met? How did it smell? What did it feel like? What did it sound like? Note: this is a blindfold game of trust. Mirrors Let’s take a closer look at our trees; the bark, branches and leaves. Reflect on the how a bird might view the world from the top of the tree and make its home there. Shape cards Let’s see what different shapes there are in nature. Can you find some plants and trees that are wavy, straight or jagged? Smelly sticky strips Explore the variety of wonderful, scented plants we have in our herb garden. Rub, sniff and pluck small pieces of leaves and make a scented strip to take away. Texture cards Let’s see what different textures there are in nature. Can you find some plants and trees that are rough, smooth, or even slimy? Touch eggs Let’s take a closer look at some of the patterns we can find in nature. Let’s make some imprints with plasticine and observe the intricate designs. You’ve been framed Let’s go on a treasure hunt and see what leaf litter we can find. Use what you’ve found to make a Hillier’s inspired framed picture on the ground. Prefer a day with some cross-curricular activities? Take a look at our other Year 1 programmes and we’ll plan the day accordingly.
- Suggested pre-visit activities
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- Be familiar with the names of the different parts of a plant
- Plant bulbs and/or seeds.
- Suggested post-visit activities
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- Create a plant diary to record the growth of a plant using drawing, writing etc
- Investigate which plants provide food for humans and which part of the plant we eat.
- Make a booking