Series: Usborne Activities Series.
Subject Areas: Crafts, Art, Science, Botany.
Ages: 4 5 6 7 8 9 10.
Type: Activity Books, Hands-on Projects, Science Experiments

It seems like all children want to grow things once the spring season arrives. Over the years, our five kids have each done projects found in What Shall I Grow?, and have really enjoyed doing them. This book is a natural lead-in for learning about plants, seeds, propagation, and photosynthesis, and we regularly integrate these types of activities into science class. (I've used these growing projects along with the plant section of First Book of Nature.) As with all the other titles in this series, the items you will need are probably lying around your home; you might have to buy some specific seeds or small plants for a few of the activities.

I love the way Usborne books walk a child through the steps of a project. The instructions are very easy to understand but not too simple -- expands their vocabulary. The photos and drawings are a perfect complement to the directions. I've said it before, but will say it again -- learning to follow directions is great for improving reading comprehension. If you do it right, it works! If not, you'll know why.

Here are a few of the fun projects included:
- Grow a green-haired creature (we are starting one of these today -- I'll let you see in a week or two how it turns out! Go see Nathan's Green-Haired Creature)
- Grow a giant sunflower -- we love doing this and we use the results to attract birds
- Make a miniature yard, add tiny furniture and animals -- adorable!
- Grow potatoes in a bucket - very cool
- Propagate new plants from stems or leaves
- Sprout bean seeds for salad
- Grow herbs on a windowsill to use for cooking
- Grow an ivy "tower" in a pot, decorate it for holidays

We love them all!

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Awards: Lifeworks Real Life Award given for Christmas Activities from this series
Of Interest To: Librarians and Media Specialists, Parents, Science Teachers

I love this book! It has flown off the shelves at my recent book fairs. My children and I are working on growing potatoes in a bucket.

Paula Johnson,
UBAH Ind.Educational Consultant,Illinois