Vermont Reads Program Seedfolks

Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman is a powerful tale about a neighborhood becoming a community through the transformation of a trash-filled empty lot into a beautiful garden. Through first-person vignettes, readers discover how each character changes by gardening or observing the garden and the lessons they learn along they way. Below are links to youth activity ideas for instructors to implement while reading Seedfolks. These hands-on activities bring the words to life and allow youth to experience the power of plants just like the characters in the book. Tips for implementing the activities from Jan Hughes, Librarian for the Burlington High School: Read every step of the activity carefully Collect all materials ahead of time Try the project on your own first Adjust and modify the activity to fit your space and audience before youth arrive Determine if any materials, including seeds, have toxic implications (some seeds may be pretreated with chemicals to enhance germination). Make note of paints, inks or other craft supplies that may need extra care. And most importantly with any youth garden activity, remember to HAVE FUN!

Garden Project Ideas and Resources Grow Sprouts Growing sprouts is quick and easy. Kids not only experience the wonder of watching life emerge from seeds, they also end up with a delicious and nutritious snack. Check out publications by the University of Nebraska and Walton Feed for more details. Explore Seeds The National Gardening Association’s publications “Seeds Feed the World” and "Seeds the Promise of Life” provide detailed background information and activity ideas to incorporate into science and social studies curriculum. Start New Plants Starting new plants is exciting for kids of all ages. Explore the National Gardening Association’s publication on plant propagation for instructions on starting plants from seed and cuttings. Garden Indoors Brookfield Zoo provides a list of simple indoor gardening projects that all children will love. Their activity ideas include sprouting avocados, creating egg chia pals and planting a cress picture. Create Stepping Stones Stepping stones allow creativity and provide a useful product for any garden or landscape. Click here for directions from Homestore.com. Make a Pot Person Check out the Homestore.com’s article on “Pots with Personality” for ideas on creating a whimsical garden resident. Dry and Press Flowers “Preserving Your Summer Blooms” and “Drying Flowers” from About.com provide tips on harvesting, drying and storing flowers from the garden. Give a Garden! Explore ways to share plants and provide a service to your community by giving a garden. Need more ideas? Search through hundreds of youth gardening activity ideas from the National Gardening Association. Plant Related Arts and Crafts Projects Seed Art Create pictures using seeds. Seeds can be collected outside or are easily obtained from dry soup bean mixes and spices at your local grocery store. Seed art examples are even found in some museum collections and demonstrate simple art concepts to pointillism. Egg cartons are a great storage container and pictures can be any size. Check out the Backwoods Home Magazine for additional ideas on creating seed art and its history. Fruit and Vegetable Prints No need for stamps or stencils if you have a few sturdy fruits and vegetables around. Click here for instructions from Kiderart.com to create fruit and vegetable prints. Egg Carton Animals Replicate garden creatures like lady bugs, caterpillars, spiders and worms using empty egg cartons and craft supplies with these ideas from Enchantedlearning.com. Rock Art Begin this activity with an outdoor rock search. Once your new treasures are clean, decorate with paint and other craft supplies. For more ideas visit Creativekidsathome.com. Leaf Prints Leaf prints are an easy craft activity. All you need is paint, paper and collected leaves (dried or fresh will work). More details available at Abcteach.com. Gift-Wrap from the Garden Kids will love creating their own gift-wrap making the wrap as special as the present. Click here for ideas from Homestore.com. Plant Related Songs Gardening Songs A compilation of gardening lyrics sung to common tunes from PerpetualPreschool.com. Gardening Songs Songs about seeds, plants, flowers, gardens and more from CanTeach.com. Additional Resources Kids Gardening Website The Kids Gardening Website from the National Gardening Association provides thousands of youth garden activity ideas, detailed lessons and curricula, horticulture resources specific to youth gardens and information on grant opportunities. The American Community Gardening Association The American Community Gardening Association provides useful information for new and experienced community gardeners including a publication on how to start a community garden" and one on benefits of community gardening. Gardening Books for Kids - a list compiled by Sister’s Choice Editorial Reviews of Seedfolks on Amazon.com

Return to Seedfolks web page or garden organizer toolkit