Color Garden

Science/Art Activity

What You Need

• colored construction paper
• books containing pictures of various flowers

What to Do

1. Ask children to name the different flowers that they know. Then ask them to tell what colors those flowers can be. (Point out that flowers can come in many different colors. A rose, for example, could be red, pink, or white.) On a board, record the names of flowers and the colors they can be.
2. Tell children that they are going to make a paper flower garden on the board. The goal will be to include as many different colors of flowers as they can. Explain that the flowers they make have to be a color that real flowers can be (for instance, a red rose, a blue morning glory, a white daisy, an orange tiger lily, a purple pansy, or a yellow marigold).
3. Distribute the books containing pictures of flowers and have children search through the books to find different colored flowers. Add new flowers to the list you started earlier. Then help children draw and cut out construction-paper flowers for the board.

Teaching Options

• Cut out and mount (on the board) the stems and leaves for the flowers yourself. This way, children can focus on the flowers.
• Have children group the flowers in the garden according to color. Encourage them to continue to search for flowers to add to each group.
• Discuss with children the things that a flower needs to grow: soil (nutrients), water, light, and warmth. Make a list of these necessities to post alongside the paper garden.