Year 1 Science: Growing Plants Resource Pack

Year 1Science: Growing PlantsResource PackIncluding lessons on:What plants need to growNaming and describing parts of plantsDeciduous and EvergreenPlants we eatFarming and food

Types of Plants Growing Plants Plants need light, water, soil andwarmth to grow. Plants use light to make their ownfood. Plants have seeds, roots, stems andleaves.Plants spread their seeds in differentways in order to reproduce. Some plants drop their leaves everyyear; they are called deciduous. Some plants keep their leaves all year;they are called evergreen.Core KnowledgeFood and Farming We eat some types of plants. Forexample: root– carrots, stemcelery, leaves-lettuce, seeds– peas We eat food grown on farms or inorchards. Some food we eat comes fromother countries e.g. BananasScience Unit Overview– Year OnePlants and Plant GrowthGrowing Plants Grow cress seeds on cotton wool andkeep a cress diaryInvestigate: Grow a bean in a seethrough pot (p.g. 246)Investigate: what happens when seedsare left in the dark or without water (p.g248)Investigate: Put a white carnation inwater with food colouring to show howwater is taken into the plant.Creative application ofknowledgeFood and Farming Types of Plants Look at examples of deciduous and evergreentrees, compare their leaves. Discuss why trees may drop their leaves, whysome plants grow in the spring etc. Investigate: Look at leaves under amicroscope or with a good magnifying glass.What can we see? Why can’t we see the samewith our bare eyes? Cut up vegetables and discuss whichparts are eaten e.g. the root or stemor leaves.Follow the journey of a bananaVisit a farm or city farm and seevegetables or fruit growing.

Lesson 1: What Plants NeedThis lesson is the first lesson in a series that introduces children in Year 1 to the world of plants. Children will understand that plants need warmth, light and water inorder to grow. They will look at the ideal conditions for plants and will grow their own plants from seeds. Children will begin to understand that when plants do notreceive adequate warmth, light and heat, they may not grow properly. Some children may begin to understand that some plants have adapted to grow in harshconditions, such as in the desert or in the arctic. This lesson can be brought to life by children growing some plants in the classroom or in an outside space in the school.Fast growing plants such as cress are useful for children to observe seed germination and plant growth. Sunflowers grow rapidly in the right conditions and childrencan monitor their growth over time.See pages 247 and 248 of What your Year 1 Child Needs to KnowLearning ObjectiveTo know what plants needin order to grow.Core Knowledge Activities for Learning Plants need warmth,light and water to grow Plants grow from seeds If seeds do not havewarmth, light and water,they may not grow intohealthy plants Investigate what plants need to growby putting cress seeds in differentconditions. For example, some seedson a damp paper towel in thewindow, and some in a darkcupboard. Ask the children to checkeach day and look at what haschanged. Children could alsoinvestigate water by putting someseeds in a small pot of water, some ondamp paper towel and some with nowater at all. Children can record theirobservations.Children could be responsible forlooking after some small pottedplants- or a garden area if tergerminateseedshealthyAssessment QuestionsWhat do plants need inorder to grow?Describe what wouldhappen to a seed placedin a dark area.Explain why watering aplant is important.Describe the best way togrow a healthy plant.Resources:This BBC Online Activity allows you to water a plant and watch it grow. This Gardening Guru activity from the BBC is also a useful interactive resource for children.The Royal Horticultural Society has some good gardening lesson plans.

By:My Cress DiaryThird ObservationFirst ObservationSecond Observation

Lesson 2: Parts of PlantsIn this lesson, children explore the basic parts of a plant including the roots, stem, leaves and flowers. By the end of the lesson, children should be able to explain thepurpose of each part of the plant. Children will learn that in most plants, the roots act as an anchor, holding the plant in the ground. Roots also absorb water andessential minerals from the soil. Nutrients and water are carried around the plant via the stem which also holds the leaves up above the ground in the sunlight. Plantsrequire sunlight for photosynthesis, the process by which plants convert energy from the sun into chemical energy which is used for growth. It is important for leaves toaccess sunlight in order for photosynthesis to occur. The flower has a vital role in reproduction.See pages 242 and 243of What your Year 1 Child Needs to KnowLearningObjectiveTo name anddescribe thepurpose of parts ofa plant.Core Knowledge Resources:Roots- the roots of a plant actas an anchor, fixing the plantinto the ground. They alsoabsorb water and minerals tohelp the plant to grow.Stem- the stem of a plantgrows above the ground. Theleaves and flowers grow fromit. The stem is also used totransport water and mineralsaround the plant.Leaves- a plant’s leaves absorbsunlight and turn it into energythat the plant uses to grow.Flower- the flower is the part ofthe plant where seeds aremade.This BBC clip explains why plants need their roots.How to grow a bean- easy to follow instructions.Activities for Learning Show children a small pot plantcarefully remove the plant from thepot, gently brushing of the soil fromaround the roots. Children will beable to see the roots, leaves, stemand flower. Explain why each ofthese is very important.Demonstrate how plants absorbwater through the stem by puttingsome white carnations in water withfood colouring. In around 24 hourschildren will be able to see theflower coloured by the ink.Grow a bean plant (see resourcelinks)Visit a park or garden and look atsome of the plants growing there.Identify the purpose of each mleavesflowerenergytransportAlso includecommon namesof wild andgarden plants.Assessment QuestionsCan you describe a plant?Why does a plant need roots?How does a plant get energyto grow?Where do plants make theirseeds?

Date:Name:LO: To name and describe parts of a plant.flowerrootsleavesstemDescribe what each part does:The rootsThe stemThe leavesThe flower

Lesson 3: SeedsIn this lesson, children will learn that plants spread their seeds in order to reproduce. There are a number of different ways that plants spread their seeds and thislesson gives children an opportunity to explore these. Children will also continue to build a bank of familiar plant names. By the end of the lesson, children should beable to describe how some common plants spread their seeds.See pages 244-245 of What your Year 1 Child Needs to KnowLearning ObjectiveTo understand that plantsspread their seeds toreproduce.Core Knowledge Plants spread theirseeds in order toreproduce Some plants rely onthe wind to spreadtheir seeds Some plants rely onanimals to spreadtheir seedsActivities for Learning Explain and discuss the different ways plantsspread their seeds including:- Gravity: The seeds simply drop off the plant and land on theground. This can sometimes cause problems as the new plantsthen compete with the older plants for light, water and spacee.g Apple tree- Wind: The seeds are carried by the wind. Some seeds have a‘parachute’ which helps them to fly e.g dandelion andsycamore- Animals: Some seeds have little hooks which catch onto thefur of passing animals. Some seeds are eaten by animals butare not fully digested, they pass through the animal.- Pepperpot: The plant holds its seeds in a pot shaped partwith holes at the top, when the wind blows the pot is shakenand the seeds fall out e.g poppy Read The Tiny Seed and explore what happens tothe seeds Look at selections of seeds and discuss how childrenthink seeds might be dispersed – give reasons. Create a display or information booklet describingthe different ways that seeds are dispersed Children can act out seed dispersal using props e.g.sticky tape on ping pong ityrelypepperpotResources:This BBC Clip is an excellent illustration of the number of ways that seeds can be dispersed.The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle- read the story and explore what happened to the seeds throughout their journeyThis collection of songs from Out of the Ark Music has some fantastic songs for this unit including our favourite; A Tiny Seed.AssessmentQuestionsWhy do plants needto disperse theirseeds?Describe two differentways of dispersingseeds.Which method of seeddispersal do you thinkworks best?How do scientistsknow about seeddispersal?What problems dosome seeds face whenthey are dispersed?

Name:LO: To understand that plants spread their seeds to reproduce.Date:Draw a journey of a seed:StartEndDescribe the journey of a seed:

Lesson 4: Deciduous and EvergreenThis lesson covers the topic of deciduous and evergreen plants and trees. During autumn, when temperatures cool, some plants are unable to make their own food.Deciduous trees such as oak trees begin to lose their leaves. The colour of leaves change as the temperatures drop and the trees stop producing chlorophyll. They donot have enough sun light to continue with the process of photosynthesis. Deciduous trees will remain dormant over the winter period when they conserve their energyand water. In the spring, when temperatures rise, the trees begin to produce leaves again. In contrast to deciduous trees, evergreen trees keep their leaves throughoutthe year. Evergreen trees, such as pine trees, drop their fine, needle-like leaves at different times throughout the year. These leaves are coated in a wax that helpsprevent water evaporating during the winter. At the end of this lesson, pupils should know that that deciduous trees drop their leaves and evergreen trees are‘evergreen’.See page 253 of What your Year 1 Child Needs to KnowLearning ObjectiveTo understand that sometrees are evergreen andsome are deciduous.Core Knowledge Resources:Evergreen trees keeptheir leaves all yeararoundDeciduous trees droptheir leaves duringautumn time and growfresh leaves in springtimeActivities for Learning Visit a forest and gather some examplesof deciduous and evergreen leaves. Studytheir different shapes, sizes, colours andtextures.Look at images of trees and sort theminto evergreen or deciduous. You couldalso look at sorting images of trees intoseasons.Complete recording sheet showing thedifferences in two trees over a year. (seeworksheet) Children can choose onedeciduous and one evergreen tree beforedrawing both in the boxes thatcorrespond to the changing seasons.This BBC clip shows a deciduous forest during autumn time.This BBC clip describes the life of an apple tree including reference to deciduous trees.This website has lots of information about British trees.The Forestry Commission has put together some creative ideas for a forest ingannualAssessmentQuestionsDescribe how adeciduous treechanges throughoutthe year.How are evergreentrees different fromdeciduous trees?Why do deciduoustrees drop theirleaves in autumn?

Name:Date:LO: To understand that some trees are deciduous and some are erAutumn