Activity Idea: Carrot Top

Head Start QuickSource® reminds us that a child's approach to learning contributes to their success in school and also influences his development and learning in other domains. A child's ability to "stay focused, interested, and engaged in activities supports a range of positive outcomes, including cognitive, language, and social and emotional development. It allows children to acquire new knowledge, learn new skills, and set and acheive goals for themselves." The Approaches to Learning domain refers to the observable behavior that "indicates ways children become engaged in social interactions and learning experiences."

Here's an activity called Carrot Top that will help children learn to maintain concentration over time on a task. For this activity, you will need carrots, water, food coloring and drinking glasses or jars. Discount School Supply's® Root-Vue Farm® would augment this activity by providing an example for children to see how plants grow.

Materials Needed:
Carrots
Water
Food coloring
Drinking glass or glass jar
Root-Vue Farm® (ROOT)

Let's Get Started:
1. Read the book The Carrot Seed by Ruth Krauss or The Giant Carrot by Jan Peck.

2. Cut the end tips off several carrots. Place one of the carrots in glass half full of water.

3. In a second glass add 8-10 drops of red food coloring and a carrot tip.

4. Place both glasses in a sunny window for several days.

5. Cut the carrots in half and look inside. The one that was sitting in colored water should show the way water was absorbed. A carrot is really a taproot, like a radish and a parsnip.

Furthermore....
Make a carrot salad by mixing carrot slivers with raisins or chunks of apples. Serve this salad at snack time.

If using POCET™, this activity corresponds with the devlopmental guidelines shown in AL3: Maintains Concentration and Interest Despite Distractions.