Gather:

1. •    Dry bean seeds, especially big types like lima beans, available in the in the grocery store in the dried food area. (Avoid using garden seeds from packets destined for planting. Garden seeds may be treated with pesticides or other unhealthy chemicals). Dry bean soup mix is another fun source of different types of beans. Compare with popcorn, wheat or corn seeds.
   

2. •    Paper towels
   

3. •    Water
   

4. •    Plastic bag or paper plate covered with plastic wrap
   

Explore:

Wet two or three paper towels until damp, not dripping wet. Lay the towels flat. Place enough beans for all the children on half of the towel. Fold the top over, creating a sandwich with the beans inside. Slip the paper towels into a plastic bag and close, or onto a paper plate and cover with plastic wrap. Depending on the temperature, the beans should start to swell and a root start to form as early as 24 to 48 hours later. Show the child how to slip open the two halves of the bean (called cotyledons*) and observe the newly emerging plant inside.

Open a few every day to see how the new plant grows. Allow the children to experiment with the seeds. They might want to remove portions of the plant or seed or change the growing conditions (moisture, light, add soil) to see what happens.

Compare seeds with two cotyledons* with seeds from plants like corn or wheat, which have only one.

*Cotyledons are the food storage part of the seed. They are the dark purplish bean-shaped structures surrounding the leaves in the photo below.