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VEGGIE PLATES (Art/Language)
Invite your children to look through seed catalogs and supermarket fliers to find pictures of vegetables. Have them cut or tear out the pictures. Give each child a paper plate. Then have the children brush glue all over their plates and place their veggie pictures on top of the glue. (Or let the children use glue sticks to attach the pictures to their plates.) Encourage the children to share their Veggie Plates and name the vegetables on them.
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VEGGIE PRINTS (Art)
Select several different kinds of veggies, such as potatoes, carrots, bell peppers, and ears of corn. Cut the veggies in half crosswise. Place thin, flat sponges in shallow pans and pour on small amounts of tempera paint to make paint pads. Then show your children how to press the cut ends of the veggies onto the paint pads and then onto pieces of construction paper to make prints.
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MISSING VEGGIE GAME (Memory)
Place five or more familiar vegetables on a tray and have your children sit around it in a circle. Discuss the names and characteristics of the veggies. Then ask the children to close their eyes while you remove one of the vegetables. When they open their eyes, have the children take turns trying to guess which of the veggies is missing. After the correct answer is given, mix up the positions of the vegetables and start the game again. Continue as long as interest lasts.
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VEGGIE PATTERNS (Math)
Set out a variety of vegetable rubber stamps along with washable inkpads. On a piece of lined paper for each child, use two of the veggie stamps to start a pattern, such as carrot-tomato, carrot-tomato. Then ask the child to continue the pattern using the two rubber stamps. Continue with more elaborate patterns, such as carrot-tomato-carrot, carrot-tomato-carrot; or carrot-tomato-tomato-carrot, carrot-tomato-tomato-carrot. Encourage older children to make up their own Veggie Patterns, if they wish.
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VEGGIE PLANTS (Science)
Try one or both of the ideas below with your group.
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Sweet Potato Plant: Fill a large glass jar with water. Select a sweet potato, stick in several toothpicks around its middle, and use the toothpicks to balance the potato on the rim of the jar so that its bottom half is covered with water. Let your children add more water to the jar as necessary and observe as roots begin to appear out of the bottom half of the potato and green leaves out of the top half. |
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Veggie Tops Garden: Choose root veggies, such as carrots, beets, or turnips. Remove any foliage. Then cut off the tops of the vegetables in 1-inch pieces. Stand the veggie tops cut-side down in a shallow pan and add about ½ inch water. Invite your children to keep the water level constant and watch for leaves to start growing out of the veggie tops within a week.
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PLANT, PLANT THE VEGGIE SEEDS (Music/Movement)
Tune: “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”
Plant, plant the carrot seeds, (Make planting movements.)
Plant them in the sun. (Circle arms above head.)
Water them, water them, (Make sprinkling movements.)
Water them, water them.
Gardening’s so much fun! (Smile.)
Liz Ryerson
Repeat the song, substituting other veggie names for “carrot.”
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IN THE VEGGIE PATCH (Music/Math)
Tune: “Way Down Yonder in the Paw-Paw Patch”
One little, two little, three little carrots,
Four little, five little, six little carrots.
Seven little, eight little, nine little carrots,
Ten little carrots in the veggie patch.
Heather McPhail
As you sing the song, have your children hold up the corresponding number of fingers. Continue singing about other veggies, such as onions, peppers, or taters
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VEGGIE SOUP (Food Preparation)
Let your children help wash vegetables to use for making soup, such as carrots, celery, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, and zucchini. Bring 6 to 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pan and stir in cubes of bouillon to make broth. Chop the veggies, add them to the pan, and simmer them, covered, for about 30 minutes, or until soft. Season to taste, and then serve the soup in small bowls.
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Additional Vegetable Activities can be found at:
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