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Daily At-Home Project: Make Your Own Terrarium

by | Apr 24, 2020 | At-Home Enrichment | 0 comments

Please find below our daily SolBe Family update letter containing helpful resources and exciting projects to explore while we all do our part to stay home during this pandemic. Subscribe here to receive daily updates.

April 24, 2020

SolBe Families,

Terrariums! 

These teeny-tiny, mini gardens are easy to care for and a magical way to explore ecosystems! Truly understanding an ecosystem in all of its beauty, wild collaboration, primitive dependency, unimaginable hardiness, and, sadly, fragility could leave all of us overturning every stone for the next hundred years. Fortunately, explorers, scientists, and curious wanderers that came before us have documented findings, allowing us to have some understanding of how these global, microbiological communities sustain.

But the cycle continues….

The surprise, the awe on our kiddos’ faces as they see their first salamander, taste the saltiness of ocean water, perhaps even experience their first bee sting—all of these encounters engage curiosity, wonder, and are potential teaching moments that can provoke primal joy, the kind we hope radiates within us forever. 

As we create this mini, home-dwelling ecosystem, let us think of the systems we are part of.  Our home, how it fits into our neighborhood, all the creatures that also inhabit that area. How do we impact one another? An empathic exercise that serves greatly during Earth Week and throughout our lifetimes.

You will need

*To source these materials, take a walk in the woods, near a river or pond, you will find what you need there. Take time to explore each item. Some moss is hard to pull up, why? Moss also grows on sticks and rocks. Where is the sand in relation to larger stones? How did they get there?

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  • A jar, get creative, what do you have at home? Perhaps something that was bound for the landfill?
  • Sand
  • Gravel or small stones
  • Potting soil
  • A small plant
  • Moss

Directions

  • Add a layer of gravel or larger stones.

  • Add a shallow layer of sand.

  • Add some soil. If your container has a narrow opening, using a piece of paper rolled into a funnel will make this step much easier! 

  • Place your moss gently into the container.
  • With your finger, tongs, or tweezers, push the moss aside making enough room for your plant’s root ball. 

  • While holding the plant in one hand, gently break apart the lower part of the plant’s roots. This will encourage the plant to expand its roots in its new home.
  • Nestle your plant into the area next to the moss.  
  • This ecosystem needs water to survive. Gently water your terrarium once a week. One TBSP of water will do. 
  • This ecosystem also needs the sun. Find a nice sunny spot for your little ecosystem to flourish in your home.

For more terrarium inspiration, click here and take a look at this terrarium that has only been watered once in 53 years!

Above all, be well and stay healthy!

The SolBe Team


Be Supported

We’ve felt the uncertainty that occurs when our children are in the care of someone else. At SolBe, we know you will always be your child’s first teacher; we’re here as a knowledgeable partner in your child’s education.

From our experience, children rise to the intellectual life of those around them, so we are committed to growing as individuals and as a team. You can count on us to provide a warm and engaging learning experience for your little one.

Be Inspired

We’ve spent thousands of hours in classrooms that either overstimulate, underwhelm, or actively prevent educators from delivering the highest-quality education and care. At SolBe, you’ll go beyond the traditional four-walled classroom.

Our award-winning, inventive and uplifting learning spaces stimulate the senses and instill feelings of home-like safety and comfort. They allow for your child’s, and our educators’, changing needs and emotions. They create room for wonder—for learning, and living, outside the lines.

Be Immersed

We’ve seen what’s lost when things are done the way they’ve always been done before. SolBe is an adaptive Spanish exposure program that refuses to accept the status quo.

Our inventive practices grow from the shoulders of giants, with roots in the Reggio Emilia approach, the Montessori method, and well-researched cognitive disciplines that attend to the whole child. We create opportunities to develop character attributes that your child will benefit from for a lifetime. Collaboration. Communication. Independence. Healthy risk-taking. Critical thinking. Emotional awareness. Resilience. Intellectual curiosity. Creative innovation. An authentic love of life and learning.

Be Well

We know what it’s like to forget to feed ourselves—physically, mentally, and emotionally. At SolBe, we understand it’s impossible for you to pour from an empty cup. And we do what we can to keep your cup full.

Our learning ecosystem is designed with children and educators—and you—in mind. Seed-to-table nutrition program. Yoga and mindfulness. An all-inclusive experience so you don’t need to worry about finding time to provide meals, diapers, or wipes (unless you want to). Evening and weekend family programs.