Gather your supplies (& children -- our daughter loves to help in the garden). For planting the seeds, there are many-cell planters, or you can use an old egg carton or berry clamshell..

Use the best seeds you can find - heirloom seeds, seeds from gardener friends or seed banks, or seeds you've saved from farmer's market fruits and vegetables.

Fill up your container cells with fresh, moist potting soil.

Some seeds tell you at what depth to sow them.

Otherwise just look at them. You'll want to plant them approximately as deep below the surface as the seeds are big.

These are green bean seeds; we'll need to sow them about 3/8" below the soil surface.

Make sure to label what you've planted using something that can survive getting wet.

Cover with something that will help retain heat and moisture. Place somewhere warm --inside if there's any danger of frost. Sprinkle with water daily, and in about a week you'll see sprouts!

How to germinate seeds in cold weather

If there's still a possibility of frost or you have a winter crop still in your garden, you can start summer seeds in early spring like this.