Science & Nature: Seeds, Growing & the Night Sky
Cross-curricular KS1 science with Glowberry and the Moon Seed and The Sparkle Tree and the First Star: a seed-planting investigation, a pupil observation diary and a night-sky session.
Seeds, Growing & the Night Sky
Using Glowberry and the Moon Seed and The Sparkle Tree and the First Star, both free to read in the Dream Machine. Glowberry waters her seed for seven nights before anything happens. On the eighth, a shoot appears.
Learning objectives
- To observe how seeds grow into plants.
- To find out what plants need to grow: water, light and a suitable temperature.
- To record simple observations over time.
Curriculum links
- Science, Year 2 Plants: observe and describe how seeds grow into mature plants; find out how plants need water, light and a suitable temperature.
- Working scientifically: observing closely; recording data.
- English: retelling a story in order.
Session 1: the story and the planting (45 min)
- Read Glowberry and the Moon Seed. Ask: "What did Glowberry do every day for her seed?" (watered it at dawn, sang to it at dusk, sat with it in the rain).
- Talk: "Real seeds don't come from the moon. What do real seeds need?" List ideas, then sort them: water, light, warmth, soil, (singing? Let's test our ideas!).
- Plant. Each child plants cress seeds on damp kitchen paper in a pot, or a bean in a clear jar against damp paper so the roots show.
- Make it a fair test (optional). Keep one pot in a dark cupboard, one with no water, and one on a sunny windowsill. Predict which will grow best.
Session 2: observing (10 min a day)
Children check their seeds each day and fill in the Moon Seed diary: draw what they see, measure with cubes or a ruler, and note whether it was watered.
Session 3: the night sky (30 min)
Read The Sparkle Tree and the First Star. Talk about what we can see in the night sky (the Moon, stars) and when we can see them. Children draw their own "first star" picture and write one sentence about what the tree gave away.
My Moon Seed Diary
Name: ______________________ I planted: ______________ Date: __________
| Day | What I see (draw it!) | How tall? | Watered? ✓ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Night 1 | |||
| Night 2 | |||
| Night 3 | |||
| Night 4 | |||
| Night 5 | |||
| Night 6 | |||
| Night 7 | |||
| Night 8 |
What I found out
My plant grew best when it had ______________________________________________
Plants need __________________, __________________ and __________________ to grow.
Glowberry waited 7 nights. My seed showed a shoot after ______ days.
Safety: wash hands after handling soil and seeds. An adult should supervise planting.