What does your family do with the masses of plastic spoons that collect after getting takeout? Don't just throw them away; reuse them! Help your first grader make plant markers in this simple recycling project.
For a tasty treat and a perfect place to use the markers, help him start an herb garden. Herbs make a wonderful addition to soups, pizzas, salads and more!
What You Need:
- Herb seedlings
- Several plastic spoons
- Paint pen
- Hand shovel or cultivator
What You Do:
- Have your child wash the spoons.
- While this is being done, write down the names of the plants. Because the bowl of the spoon is small, keep names as short as possible (oregano for Greek oregano, etc).
- Next, have him practice writing the names, keeping to the small space available on a spoon.
- Now have your child use the paint pen to write one name on the bowl of each spoon.
- While the paint dries, pick out a sunny place in the yard for your garden. In historic towns, herb gardens were often planted near the kitchen door where it would be easy to pick the herbs while preparing a meal.
- Have him break up the soil with a shovel or hand cultivator.
- Next, have him decide where each plant will go in your herb garden. Scoop out a hole for each plant. Show him how to ease each seedling out of the pot and place it in the ground, patting the soil into place around it. Water lightly.
- Invite him to insert the handle of each plant marker into the loosened soil beside each plant.
To add to your herb garden, take a plastic knife and turn it into a ruler. Put it beside your new plants so that your child can gauge their growth!
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