In Science this semester we will be studying how living things grow and respond to the environment in which they live. We will start out by studying plant growth and responses, including lessons on the adaptations of plants, plant's needs, distinguishing between vascular and nonvascular plants, plant tropisms and rythms.
We'll move on to the different types of plants including mosses and liverworts (nonvascular plants), ferns and gymnosperms, angiosperms and flowering plants (seed producing and fruit producing).
We will research the adaptations that make plants successful and perform various experiments to show how plants adapt. The class will germinate seeds to learn about plant growth, plant structures, and how plants meet their needs. They will conduct an experiment in order to see how plant's roots can respond to their environment. Our children will discover how moss survives even though it has no "real roots" and is nonvascular. They will research the structures within seeds and gain an understanding for how angiosperms reproduce and how a seed eventually grows into a plant, and finally students will investigate the parts of a flower to learn about the functions of the parts of an angiosperm.
By the end of the chapter, students will also be able to tell why plants are important to people today, not only as a source of food, but as a source of income as well.
For specific assignments, tests and quizes, please visit the "New and Newsworthy" page. If your child is a "group leader" for their science experiment, they will need to bring home their plants and take care of them over the winter recess.
