Begoña's Blog: NATURAL SCIENCES - 1ST TERM: The Plants

PLANTS

When I'm thirsty PLANTS Song 2,40' HERE

Photosynthesis Song with Lyrics HERE

You must identify the different parts of plants, what each part does, and how plants grow. Good luck!

Plant Parts: ROOTS, STEMS, LEAVES, FLOWERS, FRUITS and SEEDS

ROOTS

The roots fix the plant in the soil and absorb water and nutrients. The roots grow in the ground. Plants can have thick roots (such as carrots) or hairy roots (such as onion). In both cases, the roots are what carries the water and nutrients needed for plants to grow.

STEMS

Stems carry water and nutrients taken up by the roots to the leaves. Then the food produced by the leaves moves to other parts of the plant.

LEAVES

Leaves are the food factory of green plants. Leaves can have different shapes and sizes.

Leaves are made to catch light and have openings to allow water and air to come and go.

Leaves are the site of the food making process called photosynthesis. In this process, carbon dioxide and water in the presence of chlorophyll (the green pigment) and light energy are changed into glucose (a sugar). Photosynthesis supplies food for the plant and oxygen for other forms of life.

A green plant helped make the oxygen you are breathing today.

FLOWERS

Flowers not only look pretty but, in fact, are important in making seeds. Flowers have some basic parts. The female reproductive organ is the pistil or Carpel. It has ovules inside.

The male reproductive organs are called stamens. They have pollen at the top.Male reproductive cells travel down the tube and join with the ovule, fertilizing it. The fertilized ovule becomes the seed, and the ovary becomes the fruit.

Petals are also important parts of the flower, because they help attract pollinators such as bees, butterflies and bats. You can also see tiny green leaf-like parts called sepals at the base of the flower. They help to protect the developing bud.

FRUIT and SEEDS

The fruit is the ovary of a plant containing the seeds.

Every seed is a tiny plant with leaves, stems, and root parts waiting for the right things to happen to make it germinate and grow.

Seeds are a plant's way of getting from one area to another by either wind, water or animals.

Do you know what all plants need to grow? Detective LePlant has discovered seven things. Click here to learn them!
http://extension.illinois.edu/gpe/index.cfm