Gather These Materials
| Where: | indoors for observing onions' changes |
| outdoors (or in an indoor pot) for planting onions |
How: As winter ends and weather begins to warm, show the children a few onions. Tell them that they will be observing the onions for a few weeks to see if they change. Keep the onions inside a cool corner, away from sunshine and heat. Do not refrigerate. Over time the onions will begin to get soft and will sprout green growth at the top. They may also show roots at the opposite end of the onion. Discuss the changes as the children discover them. Help children understand that this is a "bulb". It will have roots coming from its bottom and the stem and leaves growing from its top.
When the onion sprouts are 1 or 2 inches tall, dig holes in the ground outdoors. Each hole should be 1 inch deeper than the size of the onion bulb that will be planted in it.
Let the children plant each onion in a hole, and have them refill the hole with loose potting soil, patting extra soil around the base of the sprouts.
Observe the new plantings over the next few weeks. What happens? How do the onions continue to change? If children express surprise at the appearance of the onions' blossoms, remind them that onions are plants that grow in the ground. They have roots, stems, leaves and flowers. If desired, dig up one of the flowering onions to see how the underground parts have changed since it was planted.
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