Who Won the Surprise Sunflower Contest?
Grandma and her grandkids reading a book together in a cozy spot
Sunday afternoon, my youngest child, Aarav, asked, "Can we grow something larger than Daddy's shoes?" That was the start of it all. The challenge was too good to pass up. By evening, our family had started the Great Sunflower Competition. Each person chose a sunflower seed and a used cup to plant, and they decorated their "pots" with markers and extra paint. Someone could not look at someone else's plant before the official check-in every Saturday.
Our deck turned into a science lab over the next few weeks. Maya checked the height of each plant every day and wrote down the hours of sunlight and when to water them on a bright chart that was stuck to the wall. Riya made tiny paper hats for her sprouts to protect them from UV light, while Aarav used kitchen foil and an LED to make a homemade monitor to measure the moisture in the soil.
People shared their ideas about why their sunflower died during two days of rainy weather over dinner. What would happen if we put compost in? The kids made notes, drew root maps, and even compared the growth of their sunflower to that of wildflowers they saw in our neighborhood.
Soon, we were not just raising sunflowers; we were also learning about math, biology, and the environment and growing our natural interest.
As time went on, our "experiment zone" grew to include empty juice boxes for measuring water, sticks for marking plant heights, and paints for making color charts of leaves. Even mishaps, like a few droopy plants, some failed seeds, and a mouse getting into trouble, were part of the learning process.
We agreed with what Dr. Maria Rodriguez said: yard projects that kids do with their hands make science come to life for kids as young as five. Each child had their own way of doing things—Aarav loved tools, Riya focused on art, and Maya carefully recorded data—but they were all learning naturally, at their own pace, and through play.
By the end of the competition, the sunflowers were tall and proud, but my kids' excitement and confidence had grown even more. We celebrated by making flower wreaths and taking a picture as a family next to the biggest sunflower. It was a great way to remember that learning is best when you do not feel like it.
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