Elementary School, Plant Biology Lesson Plans (7 results)

Plants provide us with so much — oxygen to breath, food to eat, materials to make clothing and paper, and beautiful flowers and leaves to admire! How can plants be so diverse and survive in so many kinds of climates? How do they know how to grow towards the sun? Why do some plants not have seeds? Explore the amazing and beautiful world of plants.

Plant Biology

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_HK_9rFBkw

Water Transport in Plants

Lesson Plan Grade: 2nd

4 reviews

Your students might know that plants need water to survive. But how does a plant "drink" and get water from the soil all the way up to its' leaves? In this lesson plan, students will observe how plants (flowers and celery) suck up dye-stained water, which makes the petals and leaves change color! This allows students to visualize the process of how water moves through a plant. Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

2-LS2-1. Plan and conduct an investigation to determine if plants need sunlight and water to grow.

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Designs in Nature: Investigate the Branching Structure of Trees

Lesson Plan Grade: Kindergarten-2nd

Nature is full of objects with many different shapes. Some of these shapes display obvious regularities or distinct patterns, such as stripes, waves, symmetry, or spirals. Each of these natural patterns has evolved over a very long time and serves a specific function that usually helps a plant, animal, or other organism to survive. In this lesson plan, students explore the branching pattern of trees, plants, and leaves. They will make drawings and a leaf rubbing to compare different branching… Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

K-2-ETS1-2. Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem.

Flowers Seeking Pollinators

Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-7th

3 reviews

In this activity, students learn about plant reproduction and use real data to construct explanations about which flowers are the most attractive to different pollinators. Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

3-LS1-1. Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death.
4-LS1-1. Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
MS-LS1-4. Use argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support an explanation for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures affect the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants, respectively.

Stomata Printing: Microscope Investigation

Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-12th

1 review

Plants have many crucial roles on our planet, and among these is the gas exchange that happens within their leaves. As plants take in carbon dioxide from our atmosphere, they release oxygen and retain the carbon. In this lesson, students will investigate leaves up close to look for the structures responsible for gas exchange. Read more

Apple Science: Comparing Apples and Onions

Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-5th

2 reviews

Students will explore heredity concepts by comparing observable traits of apples and onions, collecting data on the traits of different apple varieties, and learning about apple production. Additional activities include hands-on methods for testing apple ripeness. Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

3-LS3-1. Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms.

Plant Cycles: Photosynthesis & Transpiration

Lesson Plan Grade: 3rd-5th

What do plants need? Students examine the effects of light and air on green plants, learning the processes of photosynthesis and transpiration. Student teams plant seeds, placing some in sunlight and others in darkness. They make predictions about the outcomes and record ongoing observations of the condition of the stems, leaves and roots. Then, several healthy plants are placed in glass jars with lids overnight. Condensation forms, illustrating the process of… Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

5-LS1-1. Support an argument that plants get the materials they need for growth chiefly from air and water.

The Role of Interdependence for Pollination and Seed Dispersal

Lesson Plan Grade: 2nd

2 reviews

Pollination and seed dispersal are both crucial processes in a plant's reproduction cycle. These processes are helped along by many factors, including different animals. For instance, some animals disperse the plant seeds, while others transfer pollen from one flower to another. In this lesson plan, students will investigate the interdependence between plants and animals for pollination and seed dispersal by creating interdependence webs out of yarn. Based on their created interdependence webs,… Read more

NGSS Performance Expectations:

2-LS2-2. Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.

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