Each fall at harvest time, young students in the authors' part of the Midwest visit apple orchards to learn more about the life cycle of plants. This tradition is one part of a larger unit centered on apples, integrating life science with language arts and social studies. The authors partnered with kindergarten teachers at several schools to…

As well-developed as they may be, standards are not curriculum. It is the job of teachers and curriculum teams to use the Standards as the basis for designing the specific pathway for teaching and learning. In this article, the authors explore the use of Understanding by Design (UbD), a widely-used curriculum development framework, for honoring…

The authors describe how grade 4 students carried out an investigation about growing cucumbers (members of the curcurbit or gourd family) where they read information sources about seed variety; germinated seeds under different conditions; measured and partitioned growing spaces; collected and analyzed data on germination, true leaf growth, and…

Many preschool classrooms explore plant growth. However, because many plants take a long time to grow, it is often hard to facilitate engagement in some practices (i.e., since change is typically not observable from one day to another, children often forget their prior predictions or cannot recall what plants looked like days or weeks earlier).…

Computers have changed the landscape of scientific research in profound ways. Technology has always played an important role in scientific experimentation--through the development of increasingly sophisticated tools, the measurement of elusive quantities, and the processing of large amounts of data. However, the advent of social networking and the…

One of the most captivating things about plants is the way they capture the Sun's energy, but this can be a difficult topic to cover with elementary students. Therefore, to help students to make a concrete connection to this abstract concept, this series of solar-energy lessons focuses on leaves and how they act as "solar collectors." As students…

When it comes to directly interacting with and doing experiments with organisms, plants have some distinct advantages over animals. Their diversity and accessibility allows students to use them in experiments, thus practicing important science inquiry skills. This article describes an investigation that was designed to help students appreciate the…

In order to demonstrate how plants remove water from the soil and release it to the atmosphere, students compared open- and closed-growing systems using drought-tolerant and higher water requirement plants. Then, students designed a drought-tolerant garden demonstrating what they had learned. Through this experience, students not only learned…

For several years, the author's fifth-grade students raised and observed plants, kept journals, and analyzed the functions of the parts of a plant. But this year, a near disaster taught her a lesson and increased the value of the activity for her students. Not only did students learn about plants, they now understand what a variable is and how…

The Radish Party inquiry is designed to teach the importance and relevance of soil organic matter to young students. In this investigation, students grow radishes in three different kinds of soils: sand, sand plus nutrients, and potting soil (soil that includes organic matter). The experience described here was conducted with first- and…

Investigations with Wisconsin Fast Plants can make the subject matter come alive...or dead, depending on the experimental treatment. This became apparent when a university-based teacher educator and a fifth-grade teacher collaborated on a professional development experience aimed at increasing understanding of how science inquiry could be used…

Colors are powerful tools for engaging children, from the youngest years onward. We hang brightly patterned mobiles above their cribs and help them learn the names of colors as they begin to record their own ideas in pictures and words. Colors can also open the door to an invisible world of electromagnetism, even when children can barely imagine…

Presents an interview protocol used to identify and evaluate students' conceptions of plants which is an invitation to participate in the third national study exploring elementary students' science conceptions. (YDS)

Students conducted an experiment to study the plant growth of three Amaryllis plants. Students examined the speed and amount of growth, cross-pollinated the plants to produce seeds, and compared the growth of amaryllis seeds to the growth of onion seeds, a plant in the same family, Amaryllidaceae. (MDH)

Presents three science activities targeted to help urban students learn about nature: (1) observing coloration patterns of pigeons; (2) measuring local rainfall and comparing it to other areas; and (3) conducting a biodiversity study by observing a patch of lawn. (YDS)