Summertime Learning for Young Children

* App to Grow a Plant

Wouldn’t it be fun to grow a plant from a seed and then create a time-lapse movie of it?

Seedling’s Grow is a free iOS app that will excite students to grow a plant by themselves. The interactive platform walks them through each step of the germination process, from planting seeds to sprouting leaves. Once their plant has grown, students can create and share time-lapse videos with family and friends. 

The app also provides gardening tips and facts to educate children about plants and inspire them to become ecologically aware.


* APP to explore nature with image recognition

Seek by iNaturalist is a free iOS app that encourages outdoor exploration and learning by harnessing image recognition technology to help users identify plants and animals from their photos.

Students can choose from a list of nearby plants, animals, and fungi and collect photographs of as many species as they can find. They can earn badges as they photograph new species, become more engaged with the wildlife around them, and learn cool facts about the critters and plants that live in the outdoors of their neighborhood. Registered users can pin their finds to their personal collections, provided the app’s recognition technology produces a match.

Mystery Doug for K-5 Inquisitive Videos

Inquisitive minds want to know!

Mystery Doug is a free weekly video series that inspires students to ask questions. It’s the perfect five-minute break for your morning meeting, snack time, rewards, warm-ups, or any transition times in your school day.

Explore questions like…

  • Can a turtle live outside its shell? – Samaliya, 3rd Grade
  • Why does soap make bubbles? – Jonah, 1st Grade
  • Why do I get goosebumps? – Trevor, 4th Grade

Sign up for free to get a new video every week!

Teaching Elementary Children Philosophy

Teaching Children Philosophy Book Modules provides materials needed to engage discussion through children’s literature for elementary students.  Whether it be on philosophical issues, the summary plot, or the main idea, this resource provides a series of questions that will help initiate and spark discussion. Book titles are listed alphabetically but can also be searched by category (ex: aesthetics, ethics, logic, language, multiculturalism, etc).

Referenced Resource: https://www.teachingchildrenphilosophy.org

Kodable – Programming Basics for K-5

Kodables easy to follow lesson plans focus on student outcomes for learning to code. Programming promotes critical thinking and problem solving skills that benefit students in every day life.

This coding tool is web-based and also available for Apple and Android alike.
Free Kick Starter Account Access includes:

  • Unlimited student licenses
  • 12 weeks of lessons and student activities
  • Track student mastery
  • Access on any device
  • Informal assessment tools built into lessons