# Sandbox Savannah
> Grow a mini grassland of mustard and fenugreek in a soil-filled sandbox over about two weeks. Then add plastic African animals for small world play and storytelling. It combines gardening and pretend play for Earth Day.
- URL: https://www.funlittles.com/earth-day-activities-sandbox-savannah/
- Ages: 2–6 yrs · Difficulty: easy · Mess: high
- Time: prep 40 min, activity 45 min
- Works for: one-on-one, small group, whole class · one batch serves about 2 kids
- Skills: gardening, plant-growth, pretend-play, storytelling, responsibility, animals
- Cautions: ingestion-risk

## Materials (one batch)
- Dirt / potting soil
- Fenugreek seeds
- Mustard seeds (Indian mustard, Brassica juncea) or any quick-growing seed
- 1 piece Sandbox or sand-and-water table
- 1 piece Spray bottle with water (household)
- Plastic African animal figurines
- 1 piece Shallow lid or small dish (watering hole) (optional) (household)
- 1 piece Toy rock (Pride Rock) (optional)
- Craft sticks (optional) (household)
- 1 piece Kids' gardening gloves (optional)
- 1 piece Disposable foil pan (optional) (household)

## Substitutions
- Instead of mustard seeds: Any quick-growing seed (The author lists 'any quick growing seed' as an option.)
- Instead of sandbox: Disposable foil pan (The author grew extra mustard in a foil pan just for her toddler. It also makes it easy to set up one tray per station for a group.)

## Safety
- Seeds and small plastic animals are choking hazards. Supervise toddlers closely and keep loose seeds out of reach.
- The seeds, sprouts and soil in the play bin are not food. Don't let kids eat them.
- Wash hands after handling soil. Gardening gloves are a good idea, as shown in the photos.
- Empty the watering-hole dish after play so standing water doesn't sit in the bin.

## Before you start
- About 2 weeks before play: add soil to the sandbox and shape it into a terrain of sorts.
- Sow fenugreek and mustard seeds and spray with water.
- Keep the soil moist and in shade for about 2 weeks until the greenery is lush. Kids can help tend it daily.

## Steps
1. Fill the sandbox with dirt and shape a terrain of hills and flat spots.
2. Sprinkle fenugreek and mustard seeds over the soil and pat them in gently.
3. Spray the seeds with water and keep the soil moist and in shade.
4. Check and water every day for about 2 weeks until you have lush greenery.
5. Sink a shallow lid of water into the soil as a watering hole and add a rock for Pride Rock.
6. Set out a basket of African animals next to the savannah as an invitation to play.
7. Hide animals in the grass and act out scenes, like a lion-cheetah face off or a cheetah cub hiding.
8. Make up a story for your savannah and let the animals roam, hunt and rest.

## Tips
- Keep the soil moist and in shade. After 2 weeks of tending and a few muggy days we had lush greenery.
- Mustards and fenugreek seeds are so easy to grow that it is perfect for younger kids.
- Growing plants indoors or in a container on your patio gives kids something to expect and watch excitedly, and it teaches responsibility.
- The homegrown greenery changed our usual wildlife play scene. Suddenly the animals had a place to hide, and the pretend play went on for a long time.
- Watching 'African Cats', 'The Last Lions' and 'Lion King' beforehand gave my preschooler a whole storyline. She retold the documentary and mixed in scenes from the movies.
- Some kids get picky about their scenes. My 4 year old wanted to play all by herself so I wouldn't mess up her Savannah.

## The original post by TurkeyMom (2013)

Growing mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds indoors was a part of growing up. Every year for [golu/dussherah](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golu) we did a small world setup ( farm, park, temple, cricket- the game not the insect etc). This was in addition to the main event, the display of the deities. Helpful links at the end of the post. Armed with that background, our recent viewing of **"African Cats"**, **"The Last Lions"** and of course **"Lion King"** innumerable number of times, with Earth Day coming up and with my long standing affection for indoor mustard plants, this earth day activity came naturally.

So let's bring nature indoors and combine a small dose of African Savannah for Earth Day. Please be prepared for an image heavy post. This one was way too much fun for the kids and my 4 year old said " Mom, I want to play with this all by myself because you might mess up my Savannah scene". She gets a little picky when she is creating animals scenes.

- Dirt
- Fenugreek seeds
- Mustard Seeds/ any quick growing seed
- Plastic animals

We added soil to our "sand"box and prepared the dirt by creating a terrain of sorts. Then we sowed the seeds and sprayed some water and within 2 weeks we had lush greenery. Keep the soil moist and in shade.



Growing herbs or any plants indoors or in a container on your patio by itself is a great earth day activity rather any day activity for kids. It gives them something to expect, watch excitedly and also teaches responsibility. After 2 weeks of tending and a few muggy days we had this lush greenery.



We also grew some more mustard plants in a tin foil just for my toddler. Mustards and fenugreek seeds are so easy to grow that it is perfect for younger kids. Why not start a fenugreek garden as an earth day activity for kids?



Our invitation to create an African animals scene with homegrown mustards and fenugreeks. Combine animals with greenery- earth day activities can't get easier than this!



After that it was all my kids and their imagination. I heard so many ideas and words from all the movies we watched I was almost thinking " Is my kid learning more from TV than any other means?" Have you watched African Cats? If you have a nature lover, you should. We have a Lion-cheetah face off ( they may look like they are kissing though) with the mom cheetah hiding her cub in the grasslands. Ok that's a baby jaguar but we are pretending that's a cheetah cub.  I noticed that my preschooler pretty much retold the entire wildlife documentary and mixed up good old Lion King and a few scenes from "The Last Lions" and created a wonderfully whole new story line to go along with her small world play. Here are a couple of hippos hanging out in a watering hole..





We also had a Lion King on Pride Rock.



 It is not Africa until some one has a wildebeest for lunch. Sorry for the "graphic" image.



The pretend play session extending for a long time and I owe it all to our homegrown greenery. It just changed our usual wildlife play scene. Suddenly the animals had a place to hide,



This Earth day activity turned small world play has tremendous potential.

 This is how we grew our own mustards and fenugreek and used them in play.



Thanks for reading

### Helpful Links

[**Mustard Seeds we used**](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brassica_juncea)

**Growing Indian mustard**

**More about fenugreek**

[**What on earth is Dusshera/Golu?**](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golu)

**Small world setup as a part of a religious festival**

**Links to the SAFARI toobs. The animal figurines are one of the toy purchases I never ever will regret!**