CU 5.03Parts of the Plant (and Root)

1. 1

   Show the real plant on a tray. Touch the root: 'This is the root. It holds the plant in the soil and drinks water.'

2. 2

   Touch the stem, then a leaf, then the flower, naming each and saying one thing it does.

3. 3

   Give a three-period lesson on the four parts using the real plant.

4. 4

   Bring the plant puzzle. Remove each piece by its knob, trace it, and name it.

5. 5

   Replace the pieces and invite the child to do the same.

6. 6

   On later days, match the picture cards and then the label cards, and check with the control cards.

7. 7

   Show the carrot (taproot) and the grass (fibrous roots) side by side and name the root types.

What catches the child’s eye

• Real roots shaken free of soil, with thin root hairs
• The single orange carrot root next to the tangle of grass roots

Extensions, easiest to hardest

1. Trace the puzzle pieces and label them to make a plant booklet
2. Match the root nomenclature cards
3. Sort vegetables we eat by plant part (root, stem, leaf, flower, seed)
4. Read definition cards and match them