Unit Title:  Plants

Grade Level(s):  3rd

Subject/Topic Areas:  Science

Time Frame:  3-4 Weeks

Key Words:  root, stem, leaf, seed, sprout, seedling, photosynthesis, chlorophyll

Technology:  “The Great Plant Escape”  http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/gpe/case1/index.html

Unit Designer(s):  Sharla Steever

School District:  Hill City School District 51-2

School:  Hill City Elementary

 

Brief Summary of Unit

Students will be aware of the parts of a plant and the functions of those parts, as well as the growth process from a seed to a plant.  They will be able to analyze and predict plant needs through designing and experiment as well as record their findings in a graph or chart.  Students will also be able to describe the food-making process of photosynthesis and how it helps plants to grow.

 

Desired Results

 

Enduring Understandings: Students will understand that...

Students will understand that plants have a unique and intricate structure.

Students will understand the needs plants have in order to survive.

 

 

Essential Questions

In what ways does a plant differ from other living things?

How are plants valuable to the environment?

What would happen if we no longer had plants?

Could a plant survive if it was missing one of its parts or one of its needs?

 

 

Link to Content Standards

 

Content Area:  Science

Source:  http://www.state.sd.us/deca/TA/contentstandards/science/index.htm

 

Goal:  Life Science

 

Indicator:  1 – Understand the fundamental structures, functions, and mechanisms found in living things.

 

Benchmark(s):  a – Identify relationships between structures and functions within an organism.

 

Standards (knowledge and skills): Students will know and be able to do...

Students will be able to identify and label the parts of a plant given a diagram.

Students will be able to describe the process of photosynthesis.

 

 

Content Area: Science

Source: http://www.state.sd.us/deca/TA/contentstandards/science/index.htm

 

Goal:  Nature of Science

 

Indicator:  2 - Demonstrate understanding and use a variety of processes for scientific investigations.

 

Benchmark(s):  a - Describe how scientific investigations creates new knowledge.

 

Standards (knowledge and skills): Students will know and be able to do...

Students will use investigations in science to serve different purposes.

Students will understand that science involves asking and answering questions and comparing the results to what is already known.

 

 

Content Area:  Math

Source:  http://www.state.sd.us/deca/TA/contentstandards/science/index.htm

 

Goal:  Statistics and Probability

 

Indicator:  1 – Use various models to gather data, study problems, and draw conclusions.

 

Benchmark(s):  c - Make and support inferences through data collection.  

 

Standards (knowledge and skills): Students will know and be able to do...

Students will represent data in graphs or charts using the appropriate form.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evidence of Understanding

 

Range of Evidence

 

Performance Task Vignette(s):

1.      Students will create an advertisement for plants to buy one or all of their basic needs.  Scoring will be done through a checklist

2.      Students will conduct an experiment documenting effects of light and water on plant

            growth.  Scoring will be done through a holistic rubric. 

 

Other Evidence: Quizzes, Tests, Academic Prompts and Work Samples

1.      Students will use a graphic organizer provided through the curriculum to guide their progress through the unit.

2.      Quizzes in the form of diagrams will be used to show student understanding.

3.      A Triangular Review will be used at the end of the unit to show understanding prior to the final exam.

4.      Final Exam

 

Unprompted Evidence

Self-Assessment / Peer-Assessment

We will be working daily at reviewing concepts taught through classroom discussion, actions and diagrams on the board.

One self-assessment will be done on-line to solve plant mysteries with “Detective LePlant.”

 

 

 

Learning Experiences and Instruction

 

 

Learning Activities:

Students will know WHERE we the unit is headed and WHY:

My “The Story Behind Plants” PowerPoint presentation will be presented the first day of the unit.

Students will be HOOKED through engaging and provocative entry points:

The PowerPoint and introduction of the experiment they will be conducting.

Students will EXPLORE and be ENABLED/EQUIPPED for final performances:

1.      Create a plant model using student creativity.

2.      Create actions that represent plant parts and needs.

3.      Classroom discussions and lesson presentations.

Students will REFLECT and RETHINK:

1.      Writing Project:  Students will reflect and write about one of the essential questions.  The writing will be revised and eventually published.

 

Students will EXHIBIT and EVALUATE:

 

Unit activities will be TAILORED to meet student needs, interests and learning styles:

 

Instruction and learning activities will be OGRANIZED to be engaging and effective:

-         Open with review of concepts taught so far or prior knowledge

-         Introduce and review actions that will help understand plant parts and needs.

-         Present new information for the day.

-         Hands-on activity or documentation in graphic organizers to conclude.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning Sequence:

 

1.      Begin with unit overview and picture walk through the chapter.  Explain that we will be having quizzes following each lesson.

2.      Write questions in journals that students hope to have answered during the unit.

3.      Make predictions about what will be learned.  Introduce graphic organizer to be filled out during the course of the unit after each lesson.

4.      Present PowerPoint on plants including photosynthesis mini-video.

5.      Begin plant experiment and create experiment log.

6.      First lesson:  “How Plants Grow” – also evaluate our experiment so far.  Introduce the model activity students will be working on.

7.      Second lesson:  “What Plants Need” – also introduce “Plant Advertisement Activity”

8.      Activity on sprouting seeds.

9.      Third lesson:  “Growing Plants from Seeds”

10.  Fourth lesson:  “How Plants Make Food”

11.  Send “Home Activities” home with the students to conduct their own experiments with their parents.

12.  Present plant models and advertisements to the class.

13.  Begin Unit review from the textbook.

14.  Work on Triangular Review in groups of three.

15.  Review Unit as a class

16.  Final exam.

 

Resources and Credits

 

Web Based Resources

 

http://www.brainpop.com/science

http://www.libsci.sc.edu/miller/plants.htm

http://school.discovery.com/ontv/videoclips.html

http://www.standards.dfee.gov.uk/schemes2/secondary_science/sci09c/09cq1a

http://www.pbs.org/americanfieldguide/topics/plants/index.html

http://www.hhmi.org/coolscience/vegquiz/partlist.html

 

 

Publications and Print Resources

 

1.  Harcourt Science Teacher’s Edition:  “Life Science Unit A” © 2000  Harcourt School Publishers.  Pp. A2-A29.

 

 

Credits

See Web-Based Resources

 

 

 

Unit Designer Comments

 

I find that students really enjoy learning about plants when there are things they can actually see.  One of the home experiments is using carnations in colored water to show how the stem of a plant sucks up water.  They love this one.  The other experiment involves having plants around the classroom.  One with no water, one with no sunlight, one with both water and sunlight.  They love to see how the plants change by the end of the unit.