Plants and Trees
This selection of resources helps teach students about the importance of plants and trees to animals and humans. They also explain how how they grow, their structure and the elements they need to flourish.
(Illustration from Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen by Franz Eugen Köhler. More about the illustration)
Learn more
Related pages
- Jones Lake State Park: A visit to Jones Lake Park not only teaches students about the habitats and animals that can be found there, but the phenomenon of the Carolina Bays is also explored.
- Tuttle Education State Forest: This state forest has been developed for use as a living outdoor classroom for students and adults to learn about the interdependent ecosystems of the forest.
- Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area: Originally settled by the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation, the Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area has a diversity of natural communities including undisturbed forest and a wide variety of wildlife species.
Related topics
Legal
The text of this page is copyright ©2008. See terms of use. Images and other media may be licensed separately; see captions for more information and read the fine print.
Students are fascinated with how things grow. There are all kinds of ways to use plants in the classroom. Consider creating a garden on the school grounds and grow flowers and vegetables. Make a terrarium. This sampling of instructional resources that can be found on LEARN NC provides students with hands-on experiences to explore the world of plants and trees.
Lesson Plans
- Trees in your own backyard
- In this lesson from the Forest History Society in Durham, North Carolina, students survey trees in the schoolyard and itemize their various benefits. They will consider human impacts on trees in the city landscape and the responsibility of citizens for preserving the urban forest. (Grade 8 Science and Social Studies)
- Trees of North Carolina
- Students complete activities including tree and leaf identification, species comparison, online research, measurement, and creative writing in conjunction with monthly visits to the “Iredell County Outdoor Education Site.” (Grade 4 English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science)
- The case of the disappearing Pitcher Plants
- This lesson addresses the cause and effect relationship between human interaction and a North Carolina endangered plant species. A role-playing scenario allows students to view the situation from a variety of positions and to collectively arrive at a solution to the problem. (Grade 8 Language Arts, Information Skills, and Science)
- The life cycle of a seed
- This lesson integrates science into the language arts block. Students will read about plant life cycle events and then write their own books about the life cycle of a plant. (Grade 3 English Language Arts and Science)
Best Practices
- Learning from a Tress
- Observation of a single tree throughout the year can be the starting point for explorations of nature, life science, and environmental science.
- Hands on Biology
- Hands-on science exploration clarifies difficult concepts and engages learners who have difficulty in more traditional classrooms. This article looks at an inquiry-based classroom that meets the needs of all of its students.
Websites
- Plant-Parts Salad
- Do you eat roots, stems, and leaves? What about flowers? Did you say “No”? Think again! Try this game to learn more about plant parts.
- The Great Plant Escape
- Collect your clues, solve a case, and learn more about plants doing this activity. This elementary program for 4th and 5th grade students introduces students to plant science and increase their understanding of how foods grow. Activities enhance student’s math, science, language arts, social studies, music and art.
- The Secret Life of Trees
- This site is “designed to help 3rd - 5th grade students gain an appreciation of trees, observe trees in their everyday lives, and develop an interest in discovering more about trees.”
- Trees are Terrific!
- Travel with Pierre Quercus as you learn how trees are important to us. This site is designed to help young children (5-8 years of age) gain an appreciation of trees, observe trees in their every day lives and develop an interest in learning more about trees.
- Kidsgardening.org
- Plan, research, share ideas and stories on this website devoted to gardens, mini-ecosystems, and everything you might grow in or near your home or classroom.
- Plants in Motion
- Watch the stinkiest flower in the world bloom, the Titan Arum a.k.a. the Corpse Flower. Other time-lapse movies document the secret lives of plants and flowers, from the germination of a sunflower to the movements of a tomato plant following the sun.
