Make Sun Tea with Preschoolers

Make Sun Tea with Preschoolers

Brewing tea out in the sun simply tastes better than quick brewing with hot water. This is also a fun science exploration to enjoy with preschoolers. Brewing tea is a fun science and discovery addition to a Fun in the Sun theme. Keep reading to see the process and tips for supporting learning along the way. 

Ingredients and Materials

• Glass quart gallon jar with lid
• 4 tea bags (decaffeinated flavor of choice) for a quart jar, 6 tea bags for a gallon jar
• Serving glass
• Ice
• Lemon slices or fresh mint if desired for serving 

Step by step Tea Brewing Instructions

Determine how many tea bags are needed for the jar size, encourage your preschoolers to help with this. You an try making a few different batches with a different number of tea bags in each to make some comparisons. ​If you have a variety of flavors encourage your preschoolers to smell each and decide which one seems the most appealing. Count and add the tea bags to the jar. 

Next, fill jar with room temperature water. Try having your preschoolers fill up a plastic jug of water to pour into the glass jar. This will support hand-eye coordination and physical development. For a class of several students you can have each child fill their own jar or have each take turns measuring out the water and adding it for an added math component. ​

Secure the lid on the jar and place the jar outside in the sun to brew for 3-4 hours. 
Make sure the jar stays in the sunlight during the entire process. Encourage your preschooler to check on the jar from time to time. Ask them what they notice about the jar, what changes are happening?
Carefully (the jar may be really hot) have an adult bring the jar inside. Use a spoon to scoop the tea bags into a bowl. Your preschoolers may wish to investigate the wet tea bags. What has changed about them? Do they smell different?

Pour the tea into a glass filled with ice adding lemon or other flavors if desired. 
Serve & enjoy!
Place unused tea in the refrigerator and be sure to enjoy it within a few days. 
Teacher Tip: Mint is easy to grow (in a container as it spreads like crazy) and would be fun to add to tea or water. ​

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More Fun in the Sun for Preschoolers

Summer Preschool Activities
Free Fun in the Summer Sun Theme Planning Page