THEME:

    Students are naturally curious about the world around them. This unit is designed to encourage and satisfy that curiosity by providing students with the opportunity to explore various types of plants and seeds through hands on exploration, books, written materials, games, the internet, and educational software. This unit is designed to span approximately one month of instruction through scientific inquiry, which will be integrated through science, language arts, math, technology, and art.                  

 Unit Goal: Students will understand that plants are living things with specific needs, characteristics and uses.

LESSONS:

What is a Plant?                           

Plant Adaptations

Plant Parts

How We Use Plants

Edible Plants

From Seed to Plant

Seeds Travel

Lesson One: What is a plant?

Goals and Objectives: Given a PowerPoint introduction to plants, students will understand that plants are living things and be able to describe their needs.

Content Standards Addressed:

Science

A INQ.1     Make observations and ask questions about objects, organisms and the environment.

A INQ.2     Use senses and simple measuring tools to collect data.

A INQ.3     Make predictions based on observed patterns.

A INQ.4     Read, write, listen and speak about observations of the natural world.

A INQ.5     Seek information in books, magazines and pictures.

A INQ.6     Present information in words and drawings.

Introduction: Initiate a discussion about plant life. Create a K-W-L, filling in information students already know about plants. Explain that they will be starting a unit during which they will learn about plants. Have the class view the Plant PowerPoint using a computer hooked up to a projector. Then add questions students may have to the chart. Hang the chart in a prominent location to refer back to throughout the unit.

Materials:  Plant PowerPoint, computer hooked up to a projector, crayons, colored pencils, or markers paper and pencils encyclopedias, botany or gardening books, or magazines with images and descriptions of plants computer with Internet access 

Procedure:

1.      After watching the PowerPoint, talk about the types of plants featured. Do all plants look alike? What needs do plants have? How do they get their food? Discuss the parts of flowering plants and the process of photosynthesis, the process by which plants make food. Talk about plants that are familiar to the students. What do they look like? Where do they grow? What are their needs?

2.      Have students choose a familiar flowering plant they would like to learn more about; tell them they will research and write a paragraph about it. Each paragraph should include the plant's common and scientific names; a description of the parts (seed, root, stem, leaves, and flower); its needs; and at least three interesting facts. Also have students draw a picture with each plant part labeled. Students may use encyclopedias, botany or gardening books, or magazines for research. The following Web sites also have useful information:

• http://plants.usda.gov
• http://www.botany.com
• http://www.plantkingdom.com/plntlist.htm

3.      Allow time in class for students to research and complete their paragraphs and drawings. Then divide the class into groups of three or four so they can share their work. Ask them to discuss within their groups the differences and similarities of the plants.

4.      Ask for volunteers to share what they learned from their research and group discussions. Review what students have learned about the needs of plants and the parts of flowering plants.

 Assessment:
Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students' work during this lesson.

• Three points: Students were highly engaged in class and group discussions; used research materials appropriately; produced a complete paragraph that included all requested information; and correctly identified all parts of a flowering plant.
• Two points: Students participated in class and group discussions; used research materials with little assistance; produced an adequate paragraph, including most of the requested information; and correctly identified at least three parts of a flowering plant.
• One point: Students participated minimally in class and group discussions; were unable to use research materials without teacher assistance; created an incomplete paragraph with little or none of the requested information; and identified two or fewer parts of a flowering plant.