ALEX | Alabama Learning Exchange

What Do Plants Need?

Classroom Resource Information

Title:

What Do Plants Need?

URL:

https://www.readworks.org/article/What-Do-Plants-Need/90bdb0ec-b3ef-48e8-8252-c0b822aa2cf2#!articleTab:content/

Content Source:

PBS

Type:

Learning Activity

Overview:

The teacher will present an informational text from the website, ReadWorks. The students and teacher can interact with this non-fiction text by annotating the text digitally. The students will answer the questions associated with the article as an assessment. This learning activity can be used to introduce students to the growth needs of plants, serve as reinforcement after students have already learned this concept, or be used as an assessment at the conclusion of a lesson. This learning activity will provide important background information before students plan and carry out their own investigation of growing plants. This resource also provides an eBook of the article with corresponding illustrations.

Content Standard(s):

Science
SC2015 (2015)
Grade: 2

5 ) Plan and carry out an investigation, using one variable at a time (e.g., water, light, soil, air), to determine the growth needs of plants.

NAEP Framework

NAEP Statement::
E4.5: Natural materials have different properties that sustain plant and animal life.

NAEP Statement::
E4.7: The Sun warms the land, air, and water and helps plants grow.

NAEP Statement::
L4.1: Organisms need food, water, and air; a way to dispose of waste; and an environment in which they can live.*

NAEP Statement::
L4.2: Organisms have basic needs. Animals require air, water, and a source of energy and building material for growth and repair. Plants also require light.

NAEP Statement::
L4.3: Organisms interact and are interdependent in various ways, including providing food and shelter to one another. Organisms can survive only in environments in which their needs are met. Some interactions are beneficial; others are detrimental to the organism and other organisms.

Unpacked Content

Scientific And Engineering Practices:

Planning and Carrying out Investigations

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect

Disciplinary Core Idea: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Evidence Of Student Attainment:

Students:

Plan and carry out an investigation of the growth needs of plants to collect data on the effects of providing/withholding enough water, light, nutrients, and air.

Teacher Vocabulary:

Investigation
Variable
Water
Light
Soil
Air
Nutrients
Causes
Effects
Isolate

Knowledge:

Students know:

Basic growth needs of plants include water, nutrients, light, and air.

Skills:

Students are able to:

Conduct an investigation to produce data used as evidence.
Determine the growth needs of plants.
Collaboratively develop an investigation plan that describes key features of the investigation and isolates variables as needed.

Understanding:

Students understand that:

There are observable patterns present in the growth of plants that can be used to determine the needs of plants.

AMSTI Resources:

AMSTI Module:
Plants and Bugs
Plant Growth and Development, STC
The Best of Bugs: Designing Hand Pollinators, EiE

Alabama Alternate Achievement Standards

AAS Standard:
SCI.AAS.2.5- Participate in investigations of the growth needs of plants (e.g., water, light, soil, air) over a period of time.

English Language Arts
ELA2021 (2021)
Grade: 2

4. Orally answer who, what, when, where, why, and how questions about a text or conversation, using complete sentences to provide key ideas and details.

Unpacked Content

Teacher Vocabulary:

Orally
Who, what, when where, why, and how questions
Complete sentences
Key ideas
Key details

Knowledge:

4. Students know:

Key ideas and details should be included when answering questions.
Complete sentences, which contain a subject and a predicate, should be used when answering questions.
Who, when, and where questions will have a concrete, objective answer.
What, why, and how questions may have a more abstract, subjective answer.

Skills:

4. Students are able to:

Orally answer questions about a text or conversation using complete sentences that provide information about key ideas and details.
Orally answer who, what, when, where, why, and how questions about a text or conversation with appropriate key ideas and details.

Understanding:

4. Students understand that:

When answering who, what, when, where, why, and how questions they should provide key ideas and details from a text or conversation to demonstrate their comprehension.
Speaking in complete sentences helps them clearly communicate their message and their understanding.

Tags:

air, attach, growth, informational text, investigation, key details, light, plants, root, soil, variable, water

License Type:

Custom Permission Type
See Terms: https://about.readworks.org/terms-of-use.html
For full descriptions of license types and a guide to usage, visit :
https://creativecommons.org/licenses

Accessibility

Audio resources: includes a transcript or subtitles
Text Resources: Content is organized under headings and subheadings

Comments

ReadWorks is a website that provides K-12 teachers with free literacy resources (About ReadWorks). ReadWorks has literary and informational texts on a variety of subjects and reading skills. You may narrow your search using grade level or Lexile level, making this website a wonderful tool for differentiation. Students will complete their work digitally, and you will provide their score and feedback digitally. This makes it easy to go paperless for this activity.

Prior to implementing this activity, you will need to sign up for an Educator Account on ReadWorks. After setting up an account, create a class from the Class Admin tab, this will provide you with a Class Code to give to students. Next, use the Find Content tab to search for the informational article that will be used during this activity, "What Do Plants Need?" After navigating to the article, click on the blue Assign button to assign it to your class.

Each student will need access to a digital device, such as a tablet or laptop. The first time students enter the website they will need to enter the Class Code that is listed on your Class Admin page. Alternatively, you can print the article and corresponding questions for students, if digital devices are not available. The teacher could also complete this activity by projecting the article and questions for the whole class to view.

This resource provided by:

Author:

Hannah Bradley

ALEX Classroom Resource

What Do Plants Need?