Natural Science Lessons for KS1We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. This costs the purchaser nothing extra. In this way I can continue to provide free resources. Thank you for your support. |
What can children learn from a humble Daffodil? LOTS!
Why do we try and avoid teaching children about the world in which they live and go for the 'whacky' science that we think will thrill, as if nature is dull and boring? We rush through the attainment targets and programmes of study for plants and animals to get on to the 'good' bits. Is that because our own knowledge of nature is so limited - we do not know the 'good' bits for ourselves? Are our own lives so divorced from the natural world around us? To quote from Primal Meats - a farm where food is grown naturally and in harmony with nature (and this statement is true whether you eat meat or do not) :
Modern humans have a mind-boggling capacity to create complicated things. From bikes, cars and trains, to quantum computers that ‘think’ and learn for themselves.
Yet, we are the only species that has consciously and actively destroyed its own habitat. Today’s world is plagued with problems: Climate emergency, biodiversity collapse, viral pandemics, human trafficking, escalating conflict and mass migration all of which we tackle in ever more sophisticated ways. Are we so drunk on our masterful achievements that we no longer think we have to live by universal laws? Do we see ourselves as entirely outside and beyond nature? Natural law, no longer relevant, living in a world where all is out-sourced and out of sight? I believe that the most significant challenge we face today is not climate change, world hunger or a killer virus - these are all symptoms - it’s our inability to understand and work with complexity or find the real root cause of an issue. https://www.primalmeats.co.uk/ I believe this to be true. We have made a god of economics and technology - a god that is inhuman and panders to greed. Sticking plasters on our climate and trying to solve all of the other problems while worshipping these false gods will only lead to more of the same - self destruction. It is only when we get our priorities right and start to work with the natural world, rather than against it, learning about a Creator rather than believing that man is at the whim of chance, that we will put things right. Mankind thinks he has outgrown these nursery subjects and surpassed them - but now, as never before, we need to truly acknowledge we have never even started to learn them. Our very souls are perishing. This means that all of us need to start listening and opening our eyes to the wonders around us - the miracle of life. Scientists can play with life - and do so to our detriment, murdering in the process. But they cannot create life; only robots - the nearest, ugliest equivalent they can come up with. Do we really want to be robots? Unloving, cold, lumps of machinery? The natural world teaches us about a God of love. It teaches us how to work with each other - as we study how all life is interdependent on each other. It reaches into our souls, like no robot ever will. So back to our Daffodil - a miracle story starting with a dead looking bulb under the ground? Is it alive or not - well wait and see! If you can plant a Daffodil bulb in autumn, with your children, pop it into a dark place and leave it until it starts to put out a shoot - then put it into a light place to continue growing. Then you can have the excitement of watching your daffodil grow, day by day. If not - find some nearby that can be watched and do bring a bunch of tight buds into the classroom. They will open very quickly in the warmth. Leaves grow, the stems and buds covered with a clear, obvious papery covering called the Calyx, followed by a yellow bud breaking through the calyx, the unfolding of the petals into the full bloom. The names of the different parts of the plant are learnt naturally - no dull boring worksheets. I still remember children dashing into the classroom in the morning: "It's out, Miss!" Oh that wonderful, glorious moment, after all that waiting! Using the study of Daffodils to teach the National Curriculum for science
A study of Daffodils easily covers a large part of the National Curriculum for Science Programme of Study for plants in Years 1 and 2:
Learn with our PowerPoint Presentation
Our Power Point Daffodil lesson provides a starting stimulus to find out more or a wrap up to consolidate knowledge. Eighteen narrated slides - see how a Daffodil grows.
Purchase our Daffodil lesson Pack now!
Our spring Daffodil Lesson Pack for KS1 includes:
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Welcome Hello, I am Lilibette (B.Ed Hons Early Years, Studies in the Environment Specialism Course), here to encourage the next generation to love the natural world, and thereby learn the necessary skills and knowledge to look after it in the years ahead. Read more... Categories
All
Popular Resources |