growing wheat- in the classroom

Here's something Bee brought home from school last week.  They are doing a science unit on plants.  This follows their unit on rocks, sand, and silt.I thought it was a clever way to start seeds in the classroom.  No more moldy bags taped to the windows. 

 This is wheat, there are few seeds that this would work well with, maybe other tall grasses.  I think wheat grows fast, so it makes a great one to use.  The teacher marked a line 1/3rd of the way up.  The kids rolled up paper towel and stuffed it in to the line.  Then they dropped a seed in the top end and stuck them in a vase of water.  From a teacher stand point, I liked that all of these projects were contained in one small area and are easily sent home when done. 

The roots grow out the bottom and the stem and leaves grow out the top.  The straw is clear so it's easy to see what's going on.  Bee's teacher didn't label them with the kids' names, but that could easily be done too.   Bee is suggesting we grow wheat in the garden next year.  If the raccoons won't mess with it, maybe we could.