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Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Corn Stalk Craft...

It's officially Spring and that means that the planting season is just around the corner.  Farmers in the Midwest are anxiously waiting for the conditions to improve so they can head to the fields.  Right now, it feels like we are in the middle of mud season as the rain just does not want to stop.  It can be frustrating, but we also know how frustrating dry weather is, so we take what we get and handle it as it comes.

If you are just stopping by for the first time, my friend Crystal at Mom for Less and myself are partnering with Indiana's Family of Farmers to help educate kids about modern agriculture.  This month we are talking about planting.  For a "behind the scenes" look into planting, check out this post from a few years ago, where I talked in-depth about the planting process.

 The girls and I made this corn stalk out of hand prints, foot prints, and finger prints.  If you've browsed my blog at all, you know I love anything that involves those three things and what kid doesn't like dipping their hands and feet in paint, or having them painted (less mess that way!)?  Not
Not only is this a super fun craft, but it also includes a little learning lesson at the end, so make sure to read to the end:)  Now, let's get started!!

You will need:
yellow, brown, and green paint
paintbrushes
white cardstock
green construction paper

Begin by painting the child's hand green...
 Then stamp it onto paper being very careful not to move their hand.  Continue this process with the other hand.
 Next, paint the child's foot.  This is sure to get a lot of giggles;)
 Stamp their foot on to the paper. (Sorry. I guess I forgot to take a pic of this step._

Next paint the child's pointer finger...
Then stamp the pointer finger on to the paper.  Add several in a "bunch."  This will be the tassel part of the corn.  You may need to pain the finger a few more times.
 Next paint the child's hand brown and stamp it on to the paper three times.  Again, you may need to paint the child's hand after each hand print.  Since, I have three girls, each one created one hand print.
Let the paint dry.  
Once the paint is dry, cut out the prints.

Glue the hands to the feet like so...
 This creates the ear of corn and the husks...
 cut some leaves and strips of paper for the stalk from green construction paper.  Assemble the corn plant...
Now, you can stop there or, to make it a bit more educational (you can't only have fun, right?) you can have the kids label the parts of the corn plant.  You can find a list of the parts here.  Note: There is a part of the corn plant called the silks, I left them out intentionally, but feel free to add them if you wish.  Fun fact: For every silk there is a kernel of corn!

Print off the words and cut them out individually and attach a piece of tape to the back.  Place them face down on the table and have the kids take turns labeling the parts of the plant.  (Even Elsa had to take a turn.)



Last but certainly not least, the girls and I talked about seed germination.  What all the seed needs to grow...water, heat, sunlight.  I remember doing this activity when I was in grade school.  We rolled the seeds in wet paper towel and waited for them to germinate.  I wanted to make the observation process a little easier for the girls so they would be able to watch it step-by-step.

The first step is to wet several paper towels.  We used about 7, but you just have to gauge what will fit in your cup.  Place the wet paper towels in a clear glass and push them back from one side of the glass.  Then insert the seed and allow the paper towel to hold the seed against the side of the glass so the seed won't fall to the bottom.
 Keep the paper towel moistened and keep the glass in a warm, sunny spot and watch the germination process take place!  (You can do this with any type of seed...it doesn't have to be corn...it will work for soybeans, flowers, vegetables.  AND it doesn't have to be field corn either!  Sweet corn that you plant in your garden will work too!)  Have fun!!


Don't forget to head on over to Mom For Less for a lesson on planting.  The kids will love learning about planting and making a craft to go with it!!




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