GRADE 3

UNDERSTANDING LIFE SYSTEMS – GROWTH AND CHANGES IN PLANTS

UNIT OVERVIEW

In this unit students will build on the Grade 1 curriculum to explore in greater detail the basic needs of plants. This will include students being able to give a cursory description of photosynthesis, and understand the functions of the major parts of plants. Students will also be able to describe how a simple food chain works and begin to understand how plants and animals are interconnected. Lastly, students will explore what foods are grown in Ontario and begin thinking about the impact food production has on the environment.

CURRICULUM EXPECTATIONS

Science and Technology, Grade 3, Understanding Life Systems – Growth and Changes in Plants.

3.1 describe the basic needs of plants, including air, water, light, warmth, and space 3.2 identify the major part of plants, including root, stem, flower, stamen, pistil, leaf, sees and fruit, and describe how each contributes to the plant’s survival within the plant’s environment 3.4 describe how most plants get energy to live directly from the sun, and how plans help other living things to get energy from the sun 3.6 describe ways in which plants and animals depend on each other 3.7 describe the different ways in which plants are grown for food, and explain the advantages and disadvantages of locally grown and organically produced food, including environmental benefits Social Studies, Grade 3, People and Environments: Living and Working in Ontario B1.1 describe some major connections between features of the natural environment of a region and the type of land use and/or the type of community that is established in that region ALL ABOUT THE NEEDS OF PLANTS Lesson 1: Needs of Plants Lesson 2: Parts of a Plant Lesson 3: The Interconnectedness of plants and animals Lesson 4: Where Did My Lunch Come From? Foods in Ontario

UNIT LEARNING GOALS: Explore the needs of plants

Identify the major parts of plants

Understand the process of photosynthesis

Explore simple food chains

Learn about Ontario agriculture

Lesson 1: Needs of Plants

Lesson Overview

Building on the Grade 1 curriculum on the characteristics and needs of plants, students will be able to describe the basic needs of plants in greater detail. Students will be able to explain the process of photosynthesis.

Curriculum Connections

Science and Technology, Grade 3, Understanding Life Systems, Growth and Changes in Plants.

3.1 describe the basic needs of plants, including air, water, light, warmth, and space 3.2 identify the major parts of plants, including root, stem, flower, stamen, pistil, leaf, seed, and fruit, and describe how each contributes to the plant’s survival within the plant’s environment (e.g., the roots soak up food and water for the plant; the stem carries water and food to the rest of the plant; the leaves make food for the plant with help from the sun; the flowers grow fruit and seeds for new plants)

Lesson Goals

Identify the basic needs of plants

Describe in greater detail the needs of plants

Describe photosynthesis

Explain how various parts of the plant contribute to the process of photosynthesis

Materials

Blackboard and chalk Internet access Worksheet (included) Living Sunlight: How Plants Bring The Earth To Life by Holly Bang and Penny Chisholm

Teaching and Learning Strategies

Ask students, what do plants need to grow? Write down their responses.

Using the basic categories of AIR, WATER, LIGHT, WARMTH and SPACE. Brainstorm each category. Why do plants need air? Why do plants need water?

Have students read THE NEEDS OF PLANTS worksheet and accompanying Thinking about the Needs of Plants worksheet.

As a larger class use the worksheets on PHOTOSYNTHESIS to talk about this process, or watch a short NOVA produced video on PBS learning at: www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/tdco2.sci.life.stru.photsynth/photosynthesis/

A good book to read on photosynthesis is Living Sunlight: How Plants Bring The Earth To Life by Holly Bang and Penny Chisholm.

Depending on the time of year, do a seed planting activity where students have to care for their seedlings and watch them grow. Basil is an easy indoor herb.

Other Book suggestions:

To be like the SUN by Susan Swanson. This book describes how a young girl plants a sunflower and watches it change and grow. Students learn about different stages of growth.

A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston. This book is a good introduction to lots of different seeds.

A Fruit is a Suitcase for Seeds by Jean Richards. This is a good introduction to different types of seeds found in fruits.

Wiggling Worms at Work by Wendy Pfeiffer. This book illustrates the importance of worms for the soil and plants.

Wonderful Worms by Linda Glasser. This book describe the vital role of earthworms.

NEEDS OF PLANTS

AIR

Plants need oxygen to survive just like us. Without oxygen the cells in the plant cannot break down food for energy. Plants get their oxygen from two sources: the soil and through a process called photosynthesis.

During photosynthesis, plants combine water, carbon dioxide and the sun’s energy to produce sugar and oxygen. The plant cells in the green parts of the plant’s body (stem and leaves) get their oxygen this way.

The soil provides oxygen to parts of the plant that is not exposed to sunlight. The roots of a plant are underground. Therefore, this part of the plant cannot use photosynthesis to get oxygen. The roots get their oxygen from the soil. That is right, from the soil! The cells in a plant’s root system get oxygen from the empty space in the soil. Earthworms wiggling around and churning up the dirt create the empty spaces in the soil!

So even though plants turn the carbon dioxide humans and animals breathe into the air back into oxygen for us to breathe, plants need oxygen to survive too!

Also air helps transport pollen and seeds from some plants so that new plants can grow elsewhere.

LIGHT AND WARMTH

The sun provides plants with both warmth and energy for growth and survival. The sun provides the energy plants need to make their own food through photosynthesis. The green parts of the plant use the sun’s energy to produce sugar (food or stored energy) and oxygen. However, too much sun will dry up the soil making it hard for plants to get the essential nutrients they need.

WATER

Whether in the form of rain, snow or the garden hose plants need water. Plants are 90% water. Water helps plants move the nutrients found in the soil up through its stems and leaves. Water also helps keep plants moist, flexible and to make its own food (remember we need water to help with photosynthesis!).

SPACE

Plants need space to grow otherwise it is hard for plant roots to spread out to get the water and nutrients they need from the soil.

Thinking About The Needs of Plants

WATER

Plants need water to help with _____________________________. Water helps plants move _________________ from the soil to its leaves and stems.

AIR

Plants get oxygen from the _______________ and through the process of _____________________. Air can help transport _________ and _____________ so that new plants will grow.

SPACE

Plants need space so their ______________ can grow and move. This helps plants take in _________________.

LIGHT AND WARMTH

Sunlight helps plants get the energy they need to make __________ and _____________. This is ____________ for plants. If the sun dries up the soil it is hard for plants to get _______________.

Process of Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is the process that plants use to change the energy from the sunlight into energy for food. Photosynthesis happens in all the green parts of a plant. Leaves are usually the greenest part of a plant so photosynthesis happens mostly in the leaves of plants.

Five important things are needed for photosynthesis.

1. Chlorophyll: Chlorophyll is a green substance that plants use to capture light energy from the sun. Chlorophyll is very important. Without chlorophyll plants cannot use the sunlight energy to make food. Also, oxygen levels in the air will go down. If that happens plants and animals will suffocate.

2. Sunlight: Sunlight has energy. Plants use this energy to make sugars from water and carbon

dioxide.

3. Water: The roots of a plant absorb water and nutrients from the soil. Just like you, plants have veins for this movement. They move minerals from the roots upwards. They move sugars from the leaves downwards. Photosynthesis can only happen in a water solution. Water is also important because it provides support to the plant to keep it upright. Like you, plants have skeletons. But unlike you many plants have water skeletons!

4. Carbon dioxide: The plant absorbs or takes in carbon dioxide from the air through little holes.

These holes are found all over the plant, mostly under the leaves.

5. Soil: The soil provides mineral nutrients and water for the plant that are necessary during photosynthesis. Soil also provides anchorage to the plant, otherwise the plant cannot stand up straight.

How does photosynthesis occur?

Plants use chlorophyll, sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to make food.

Here is a simple illustration to show how this process occurs:

1) Chlorophyll captures the sunlight energy.

2) This energy splits the water into hydrogen and oxygen.

3) The oxygen is released into the air.

4) The hydrogen is used with the carbon dioxide to make glucose (sugars).

5) The sugars are moved from the leaves to other parts of the plants where they are stored.

6) The water in the plant veins carries the sugars. When the sugars reach the storage parts they are changed into starch.

7) Plants can store the starch in these places:

Leaves (cabbage, spinach, lettuce); fruit (apples, banana, peaches); stem (sugar cane); seeds (wheat ); flowers (broccoli and cauliflower); roots (carrots and beetroot).

Lesson 2: Parts of a Plant

Lesson Overview

By the end of this lesson students will be able to identify major parts of plants including the parts of flowering plants. Students will be able to explain the function of each part of the plant.

Curriculum Connection 3.2 identify the major parts of plants, including root, stem, flower, stamen, pistil, leaf, seed, and fruit,

and describe how each contributes to the plant’s survival within the plant’s environment (e.g., the roots soak up food and water for the plant; the stem carries water and food to the rest of the plant; the leaves make food for the plant with help from the sun; the flowers grow fruit and seeds for new plants)

Lesson Goals

Identify the major parts of a plant

Briefly describe the function of each plant part

Teaching and Learning Strategies

Read The Reason for a Flower by Ruth Heller. This book is about flowers, pollen and seeds. After reading about flowering plants, provide students with a diagram of a flower. Use the Parts of the Flower worksheet as a template. Use the template as guide to describe the parts of the plant (petal, stamen: anther and filament, the pistil: stigma, style, ovary and the sepal).

The female part of plant is called the pistil and is usually located at the centre of the flower. It is made up of three parts: stigma, style and ovary. The male parts of the flower are called the stamens and are usually around the pistil. It is made up of two parts: anther and filament. The anther produces pollen and the filament holds up the anther. Petals attract pollinators such as bees, butterflies and bats. When pollination occurs the ovary will become the fruit. The sepal helps protect the developing bud. Have students fill out the Parts of the Flower worksheet to consolidate learning. Use the Flowering Plants: Concentration Game as a fun way to consolidate or test learning. As an art project, have students paint their own flowering plant including the soil and roots. Have them label the basic parts of the plant (roots, stem, leaf, flower, petal). Use the art project to create a flowering garden on a bulletin board.

Use the Strawberry Plant colouring page as a fun extra activity. Students will learn that stolons are branches to a new part of the plant and petiole is the base of the stem attached to a leaf. As well, that shoots or new plants are referred to as daughter plants. An easy experiment that will combine the lessons on plant parts and what plants need is to have each student place a stalk of celery into a plastic up and fill it with water. Add a few drops of food colouring to the water and over the course of a few days watch the food colouring move up the xylem of the celery stalk. This will provide students with a visual learning tool to see how plants get water from their roots to their leaves. After a few days the leaves of the celery stalks will turn the colour of the food colouring. You can cut a bit off the end of the celery stalk and see the xylem because it is the colour of the food colouring (will appear as little coloured dots).

Extended Learning Go to www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/is-a-tomato-a-fruit-or-a-vegetable and

watch a short 1 minute video on the explanation.

a) roots b) stolons (branch to a new plant) c) sprout or daughter plant d) stem (petiole) and leaf e) white flower f) fruit

Lesson 3: The Interconnectedness of plants and animals Lesson Overview By the end of this lesson students will be able to describe how plants get their energy from the sun and how plants help other living things to get energy from the sun. They will be able to describe how plants and animals depend on each other by investigating a farm as a habitat.

Curriculum Connections Science and Technology, Grade 3, Understanding Life Systems – Changes and Growth in Plants 3.4 describe how most plants get energy to live directly from the sun (e.g., plants turn the energy from the sun into food for themselves) and how plants help other living things to get energy from the sun (e.g., Other living things, which cannot “eat” sunshine, eat the plants to get the energy. They also get energy when they eat the animals that eat the plants.) 3.6 describe ways in which plants and animals depend on each other (e.g., plants provide food for energy; animals help disperse pollen and seeds, and provide manure that fertilizes the soil in which plants grow; plants need the carbon dioxide that animals breathe out, and animals need the oxygen that plants release into the air)

Lesson Goals

describe simple food chains

identify an energy web

explore how plants and animals are interconnected Teaching and Learning Strategies Review the learning done in Lesson 1 on photosynthesis to start the discussion about how plants get energy from the sun. Ask students, how do other living things get energy from the sun? Animals cannot eat sunshine. Although we can get Vitamin D from the sun when it is absorbed through our skin, animals also acquire that energy a different way: animals get the energy from the sun by eating plants. Introduce the concepts of herbivore, omnivore and carnivore to explore these concepts. Use the Energy Flow Web to illustrate how the sun’s energy is past on from organism to organism through the food chain. Have students draw a simple food chain to explain how the sun provides energy to plants, some animals eat the plants, other animals eat the animals that eat the plants. Give the students some suggestions. To bridge the discussion on how plants and animals depend on one another use the Farm is a Habitat reading assignment and questions to explore this theme.

ENERGY FLOW WEB

The energy from the sun is captured by The plant uses the energy from the

plants and is stored as sugar. This process sun to help it grow.

is called photosynthesis.

The rabbit eats the grass and uses The fox eats the rabbit and gets

some of the energy stored in the plant energy that is stored in the rabbit.

as energy to help it grow and survive. Energy is transferred from each

organism to the other.

Draw how energy from sunlight provides food/energy for plants and animals.

SUNLIGHT

FARM AS A HABITAT

The farm is a habitat, just like a forest, desert or ocean. It is made up of plants and

animals that interact and exchange energy, who depend on each other and who live

together in the same area. However, humans control many of the interactions that

take place on the farm.

Farmers need to know how things on the farm interact in order to make choices

about how to raise their crops and animals in the farm environment. For example, if

a farmer is raising cattle for human consumption they also need to grow the food

that the cattle will eat (hay, corn).

Livestock animals (such as cows, sheep, goats, chicken) have

many roles in the farm habitat. They eat the corn and hay grown on the farm, they

provide milk, eggs, wool, and meat for humans. Their waste can fertilize the soil.

Animal manure contains many nutrients that help plants grow. Some farmers collect

the manure generated in their barns and spread it on their fields.

Wild animals are also part of the farm habitat. Deer and raccoons may eat a farmer’s

crop, while groundhogs can dig under their fields. Frogs, skunks and toads, also

help the farmer by eating harmful insects. Farmers use fences to keep out unwanted

animals and predators of farmers (foxes like to eat chickens!).

Cows, goats, horses and sheep often graze for their own food in farm pastures that

have clover and grass. The waste they produce is spread over the field and acts like

fertilizer. Farmers move the animals between areas of the pasture every few days or

so. This lets the livestock eat young, juicy plants and allows the other plants time to

grow back. It also allows more different kinds of plants to grow in the pasture too.

Some of the energy interactions that occur on a farm are simple. For example,

sunlight gives the grass in the pasture energy to grow, the grass in the pasture is

eaten by cows, horses, goats and sheep who get their energy from the plants. Some

of these animals, if they are raised for human consumption, will become food for

humans. The energy from the animals’ waste is used as fertilizer and gives the grass

in the pasture energy from the soil that is fertilized.

Other energy interactions on a farm are more complex. For example, rabbits, mice,

deer, raccoons and other wild animals also get their energy from the grasses, corn

and other plants that grow on a farm. The waste from these animals is also broken

down into nutrients in the soil and given back to the plants. Some of these wild

animals like frogs, skunks and birds eat insects that feed on crops. Many of these

smaller animals are eaten by larger wild animals that live in the same environment

outside of the farm fence.

Like all habitats, plants and animals on a farm live together, are dependent on each other, and are connected by their feeding relationship. At the same time, the animals on a farm are dependent on the farmer and his family to help feed them, provide water and other nutrients they need, keep them cool in the summer and warm in the winter, and help look after them if they are hurt or sick (this might include asking a vet for help). The plants, animals and humans on a farm are all interconnected.

Thinking about The Farm as a Habitat. In a farm habitat plants and animals, including humans, depend on one another and live together. Describe three ways that plants and animals depend on one another in a farm habitat. _____________________________________________________________________________

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What role do humans play in a farm habitat?

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Draw a farm habitat. Label your picture.

Lesson 4: Where Did My Lunch Come From? Foods In Ontario

Lesson Overview

In this lesson students will learn about Ontario agriculture. They will be able to identify some of the agricultural products grown and raised in Ontario. They will be able to demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between locally grown fresh foods and healthy eating.

Curriculum Connections

Science and Technology, Grade 3, Understanding Life Systems – Growth and Changes in Plants 3.7 describe the different ways in which plants are grown for food (e.g., on farms, in orchards, greenhouses, home gardens), and explain the advantages and disadvantages of locally grown and organically produced food, including environmental benefits Social Studies, Grade 3, People and Environments: Living and Working in Ontario B1.1 describe some major connections between features of the natural environment of a region and the type of land use and/or the type of community that is established in that region

Lesson Goals

Learn about Ontario agriculture

Identify agricultural products grown and raised in Ontario

Demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between locally grown fresh foods, healthy eating and environmental benefits

Materials

Blackboard and chalk Worksheets (included) Teaching and Learning Strategies

Ask students to list all the ways our food is grown (farms, garden, orchard, greenhouse). Write their responses on the board.

Use the Where Did My Lunch Come From? to start the discussion about food grown in Ontario.

After students have completed the worksheet. Go over the answers with students. What other foods are grown in Ontario? List their responses.

Use the Ontario Grown Foods sheets to explore the different kinds of foods Ontario farmers raise and grow. Brainstorm as a class about the environmental benefits and health benefits of eating locally grown fresh foods.

WHERE DID MY LUNCH COME FROM?

Did you ever wonder where that apple in your lunch came from, or who grew

those grapes that are in your juice? Or what about that bread for your sandwich?

Where did it come from? In fact, in Ontario, farmers grow and raise a large

variety of crops, fruits, vegetables and farm animals. That means we have lots of

farm fresh foods to choose from right here in Ontario. See if you can guess which

foods came from Ontario farmers. Circle the food items you think we grow here in

Ontario. Remember to think of the original source.

You guessed right if you circled: chicken, soybeans, blueberries, milk, carrots,

oats, lettuce, beef, tomatoes, potatoes, grapes, corn, wheat,

Rice is grown in India, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar,

Bangladesh, and the Philippines

Olive Oil is grown in Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey and Morocco

Cocoa bean for chocolate chip cookies and the chocolate bar is grown in Cote

d’Ivoire, Indonesia, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Brazil and Ecuador

Almonds are grown in the USA, Spain, Italy, Iran, Morocco, Greece, Syria,

Turkey, Pakistan and Lebanon

Oranges are grown in Brazil, USA, China, India and Mexico

TEACHING TOOL:

Use a world map and tacks to illustrate where some foods are grown.

ONTARIO GROWN FOODS

In Ontario we grow the following fruits and vegetables:

Apples (12 different varieties), apricots, asparagus, berries (blueberries,

strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries), broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower,

celery, cherries, cucumbers, currants, eggplant, field beans (green, wax, and

peas), grapes, lettuce, mushrooms, nectarines, onions, peaches, pears, peppers,

plums, potatoes, pumpkin, radishes, rhubarb, sweet corn, sweet potatoes,

squash, tomatoes, watermelon, zucchini

Which Ontario fruits and vegetables are your favourites?

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Tell me why.

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In Ontario we grow the following grains and field crops:

Barley, canola (makes canola oil), grain corn, oats, soybeans, silage corn (feeds cows, goats and other ruminant animals), wheat (winter & spring)

Wheat Canola Oats

When we talk about wheat in Canada, most Canadians think of the Prairies

(Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta) as the place where wheat is grown. While

it is true that the Prairies do grow a lot of wheat, in Ontario we grow both Winter

and Spring Wheat. But, what’s the difference?

Winter wheat is a type of wheat that is planted from September to December in

the Northern Hemisphere. Winter wheat sprouts before freezing occurs, then

becomes dormant until the soil warms in the spring. Winter wheat needs a few

weeks of cold before being able to flower; however, persistent snow cover might

be disadvantageous. It is ready to be harvested by early July. Summer wheat is

planted in the spring and harvested in the fall. Did you know that grains are used

to make lots of non-edible products? Here are a few examples:

Corn is used in the making of glue, paint, laundry detergent, soap, shoe polish and plastics!

Wheat straw and wheat flour in plastic wrap, newsprint, glue, flooring and biofuel!

In Ontario farmers raise the following animals for food:

Beef cows, chickens, dairy cows, goats, pigs, sheep/lambs, turkey, veal calves

Steak Pork loin

Lamb chops

In Ontario there are 19,000 beef farmers and 316,000 beef cows. A lot of cattle farms in Ontario are small farms. Ontario has the fourth largest number of beef cattle in Canada.

98% of farms in Canada are family owned, small farms. That means families are doing the farming.

Pork is produced by 1,524 small farms in Ontario.

In Ontario we also grow green house vegetables, produce dairy products and eggs, produce honey and maple syrup, grow hay for animal feed, grow flowers, and raise Llamas, Alpacas and rabbits for wool.

Ontario greenhouse growers, grow a variety of tomatoes (Beefsteak, Cluster, Roma, Heirloom, Cocktail, Cheery and Grape), which are available from March to November. They also grow bell peppers (March to November) and English, Mini and Cocktail cucumbers (all year-round).

In Ontario, there are 430 egg farmers. These farms produce 200 million eggs a year!

First Nations people produced maple syrup and taught early European settlers how to harvest sap and boil it to make maple syrup. Canada produces 71% of the world’s pure maple syrup!

THINKING ABOUT FOOD GROWN IN ONTARIO

What are some of the benefits of eating local, farm fresh foods?

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Identify some foods we grow here in Ontario that you and your family like to eat,

FOR BREAKFAST:

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FOR LUNCH:

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FOR DINNER:

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AS A SNACK:

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