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Plant Science for Grades 5-6
Materials: Dictionaries, paper, pencils or pens Easy Instructions: Send students to the school library or online—working alone or in small groups—to use encyclopedias and other reference books. Ask them to find as many kinds of plant science as they can, starting with biology and botany. Their lists should include a very short description of the subject or activity of each kind of science. They can narrow down descriptions by looking up names of specialized or applied sciences in the dictionary. Here is a sample list of plant sciences: biology—living things (in general) botany—plants (in general) agronomy—soils and crops anatomy—cell and tissue structures biopharmacology—use of plants as medicines bryology—mosses cytology—cells ecology—relationships of plants and animals forestry—forest management and conservation genetics—heredity and variation, genes horticulture—cultivation of flowers, fruits, and vegetables marine botany—plants of the oceans morphology—plant form and structure paleobotany—fossil plants phycology—algae physiology—functions and vital processes plant pathology—plant diseases pteridology—ferns mycology—fungi systematics—evolutionary history of plants taxonomy—identification and classification of plants, the naming of newly identified plants Homework Assignment: Ask students to write a short report answering some or all of these questions: Of all the plant sciences you discovered, which seems like it would be the most interesting? Why? What do you think you would do if you were a scientist doing this kind of science? What would a regular day at work be like for you? What are some of your questions about this kind of science? (For this writing assignment, kids should know that they don't have to be "right" when they are speculating or imagining—dreaming and questioning are important to scientists!) |
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