LOVE Jars

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L O V E Jars and a song for Valentines Day or any day!

Submitted by Liz Hannan Montessori Music Specialist.
lizhannanmusic@gmail.com

You can download the Planting Seeds of Love song FREE!
https://www.plantingseedsoflove.com/download-original-song-free/

Additional verses to use with this activity include planting seeds of peace, hope, song in my heart and/or planting seeds of love in my home, school, class.

Materials Needed:

4 clear jars.
Place one large letter on each so they spell LOVE when next to each other on a shelf.

Or…use just one jar with the word LOVE or a heart on it

Activity:

Let the children cut the top of packets of wild flower seeds.
Let the children pour all of the seeds into a clear bowl.
Place a small spoon or scoop next to the bowl.
Use a black marker and draw an arbitrary line around the jar near the top to specify when there are enough seeds to be planted.

Sing: We are planting seeds of Love in our school or class.

Talk about the ways you observed the children “planting seeds of love” during the day. Be specific so the children understand the deed and the effect.

  • Helping each other
  • Cleaning the classroom
  • Recycling
  • Waiting for a turn
  • Listening to one another
  • Standing still
  • Eating all of their lunch
  • Showing manners at snack
  • Saying please, thank you, may I, excuse me, etc. (Grace and Courtesy)
  • Remembering to use  soft and kind voices, peaceful hands, walking feet

For example…

I saw children picking up scraps of paper and placing them into the recycling bin for paper.

That helps to keep our classroom neat and clean.

Recycling helps to keep the planet clean.

Recycled  paper can be made into other materials such as …

Let the children join in and share.

Place a spoonful of seeds in a jar for each activity of “planting seeds of love” that has been observed. Or just one scoop for the entire list.

When the seeds have reached the black “planting line” go out to the garden. Let each child sprinkle a scoop.

Make sure you will have enough for each child.

If you have no garden for planting you can give each of the children a small, cloth bag with a draw string.
Amazon, Art supply and fabric stores should have them.
Red or pink would be fun for Valentines Day.
I suggest one color for all to avoid disappointment.

Let the children fill the bag with a funnel or a specific number of scoops.
This will make for a nice job of practical life and fine motor shill.

Let the children make a name tag to attach to the draw string.

Option for actual seeds.

Use pink, white, purple and lavender colored seed paper (Amazon has a wide variety. Some are small heart shapes.)

Have the children make paper seeds by using a hole punch.
Or let them tear the paper into small pieces for the seed bowl.
Both of these activities are fun and strengthen fine motor control.

Love Jars

Download Lesson

 

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Planting Seeds of Love – A Substitution Song

Grade: PreK (ages 4 & 5) – grade 3

Concept: Have the children come up with other quality words that can be substituted for words in the song.

Materials needed: Attached worksheet, and/or do it orally.

        Activity:

  • Sing the song as written. (Download the free mp3 from www.plantingseedsoflove.com)
  • Have the children substitute their own words in place of the words love, peace, or song. (See attached worksheet)
  • They can also sing about planting the seeds in other places like their class, school, home, town, world etc.
  • They can plant seeds of love in other people’s hearts such as your’s, their friend’s, parent’s hearts.
  • Please come back to our site to share your children’s ideas with us!

Pam Donkin

PSOL A Substitution Song
PSOL A Substitution Song

Same as above in JPG format

PSOL Substitution Song Worksheet
PSOL Substitution Song Worksheet

Same as above in JPG format

Make and Plant Seed Paper Hearts

Thank you to Johanna Lee (johanadesign@yahoo.com) and Brigid Finucane for helping put together this fun activity!

Grade: PreK-3
Concept: Sequencing, Cause and Effect, Handwriting

Materials Needed:

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1. Scrap Paper

2. Water

3. Blender

4. Measuring Cup, Bucket, Large Bowl, Colander or Strainer

5. Wildflower seeds

6. Heart Shaped Cookie Cutters, or Heart Shaped Paper forms,

7. Blanket or Towel

 Activity:

• 1. Tear paper into small pieces, separate colors so you have warm and cool colors together with the white paper, i.e. cool: green, purple, blue, warm: red, orange, yellow.

If you put all color together your paper will be brown!

• 2. Place 2 cups of torn paper in the bucket and cover with hot water, allow to sit 30 minutes or longer. Scoop wet paper into the blender and blend until smooth.

• 3. Pour the blended the paper into a bowl and sprinkle with wildflower seeds and stir.

• 4. Pour the seeded paper pulp into a colander and press out the water.

• 5. Press paper pulp into the heart form. Forms need to be placed on a towel. The pulp

needs to be left to dry out. The forms can be removed carefully.

• 6. Sing Planting Seeds of Love and have the children write the word LOVE or another quality word

on their seed paper heart.

• 7. The seed hearts can be planted in potting soil or in a Planting Seeds of Love flower bed covered with
soil.

Extensions:

Second and Third Grade Alternatives

• Second and third graders can make paper on screens and then cut the heart. This will

require a screen and wax paper and 2 dishpans.

• Step 3, paper is poured into a dishpan and water is added to make the pulp runny.

• Step 4, the screen is dipped into the pulp and and then place a piece of wax paper over the pulp and press with a sponge to remove the excess water.

• Step 5, Remove the wax paper and invert screen onto a towel, press the paper fibers into the towel, couching the fibers and gently lift the screen. It will tear if it is too wet.

Additional Resources

• YouTube: Preschoolers Making Seed Paper by Jackie Saggio *Paper pulp can be used

instead of foam just squeeze out the water so it is solid, then add the tissue and water and

• YouTube: Paper Making At Home by Roger Wilk. This includes a paper press but it is not necessary. Just do not forget to add the Wildflower seeds and cut into a heart.

• Ready made seed paper @ http://www.botanicalpaperworks.com/catalog/seed-paper.

Make and Plant Seed Paper Hearts
Make and Plant Seed Paper Hearts

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Planting Seeds of Love Class Book with Collage or Drawings

This activity idea was created by Pam Donkin with help from Patricia Shih

www.patriciashih.com.

Grade: PreK-grade 3

Concept: Create a “Planting Seeds of Love” class book

Materials Needed:  Colored markers/Pencils, different colored and/or patterned paper or fabric, safety scissors/optional.  Glue.  Poster board pre-cut to size

Activity:

1. Show your students the Planting Seeds of Love video on www.plantingseedsoflove.com so they can see the beautiful collage illustrations created by Johnette Downing.

2. Sing the song with the children. (download the mp3)

3. Ask the children to decide which kind of seed they would plant (and perhaps also where they would plant it). For example: I am planting seeds of care in the world. Or I am planting seeds of friendship in my class.(see sample page below)

4. They would make a picture/collage of that.

5. Collect and make a class book, then sing the book!

Extensions:
Reading and writing exercise, spelling – See attached worksheet

 

PSOL Creative Writing Worksheet
PSOL Creative Writing Worksheet

Same as above in JPG format

Social Skills & Drama Activity: Charades

Submitted by: Dorothy Cresswell, retired Kindergarten Teacher, Choral Music Director and Children’s Music Network member.

www.pioneervalleysinging.co

1. Have the children list different quality words such as
Love, Peace, Joy, Friendship, Caring, Hope etc.

2. Cut up pieces of paper into petals and put a quality word on each piece.

3. Pick a quality word out of a hat.

Act out that quality (do this with a partner or small group*).
Give a time limit for the other students to guess what the quality is. If they don’t seem to get it, give them hints.

(*Teacher note: have a non-threatening way to make partners or groups, such as counting off one through four and all the ones work together, and the twos, etc. Or everyone who has tie shoes, or velcro, or ….When kids are told to choose partners, inevitably some kids are not chosen or chosen last. This should NOT happen in a classroom building seeds of love! Kids will not naturally partner with someone they don’t know as well, or someone who is different. Help that to happen. Help them discover that they like each other!)

Make collage flowers with each color petal associated with a caring word. Too much writing gets boring, but repetition breeds understanding.

Social Skills Charades PSOL
Social Skills Charades PSOL

Same as above in JPG format