National Trust
Knightshayes lesson plan
Subject:
Workshop title:
Key stage:
Duration:
Science
Let’s Investigate:
growing
Upper KS1 and KS2
(yrs. 3/4)
1.5 hrs.
Materials list:
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Skin coloured tights
Cotton wool
Cress seeds x 10 pkts
Paper plates x 30
Pencil crayons
Antibac hand gel
Water jug
Garden veg
Washing up bowl full of water
Paper plates
Vocabulary checklist:
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Worksheets:
Plant structure:
Seed
Roots
Stem
Leaves
flowers
Seedling
Nutrition/nutrients
Key
Observe
Diagram
Learning outcomes for 2014:
In this session pupils will:
 Identify and describe the functions of different parts
of flowering plants: roots, stem/trunk, leaves and
flowers
 Explore the requirements of plants for life and
growth air, light, water, nutrients from soil, and room
to grow) and how they vary from plant to plant
 Be introduced to the relationship between structure
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Healthy eating food
wheel
Vegetable identification
key
Plant part label sheet
Eat well plate
H+S considerations:
Outdoor learning risks See Risk Assessment for further
detail.
VAK checklist:
Visual – looking closely,
recording finds using drawings,
searching for edible plants.
Observing various colours,
textures, varieties of plants.
Auditory - questioning, pair
work, discussion, open ended
questions.
Kinaesthetic – making cress
heads, using tools, searching out
plants, shopping game.
KS curriculum links:
Science
-plants and growth
-healthy eating and diet
Art
-use a range of drawing
techniques to share ideas and
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and function: the idea that every part has a job to do.
They should explore questions that focus on the role
of the roots and stem in nutrition and support, leaves
for nutrition and flowers for reproduction
use simple guides or keys to explore and identify
local plants
Observe closely, perhaps using magnifying glasses,
and compare and contrast familiar plants
Draw different diagrams showing the parts of
different plants
Observe and describe how seeds and bulbs grow into
mature plants
Find out and describe how plants need water, light
and a suitable temperature to grow and stay healthy
Working Scientifically skills from NC:
experiences
- record what they observe
through drawing
-change 4 life campaign links
50 things NT links:
In this session children will be:
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18. Create some wild art
asking simple questions and recognising that they
can be answered in different ways
observing closely, using simple equipment
performing simple tests
identifying and classifying
using their observations and ideas to suggest
answers to questions
gathering and recording data to help in answering
questions.
using simple scientific language.
Workshop outline:
Timings
Introduction:
5mins
Hello there, I am ….
How was your journey?
Before we begin I should tell you some important things you might want to know.
The toilets are ….
If you have a question then pop your hand up and I will come to you as soon as
possible.
The emergency exits are ….
So let’s begin
Main session:
Growth of plants and labelling plant parts
examine real plants (a range of plants)
10mins
1st Activity:
Tour of the kitchen garden
Spot edible food/herbs using identification sheets and keys
20mins
2nd Activity
Vegetables and healthy eating. Colourful veg and strange/heritage varieties.
Tasting of veg-picked and cleaned from garden
Look at healthy eating food plate-quantities
25mins
Draw healthy plate of food using quantities
3rd activity and Plenary
Make cress heads-recap learning and make concrete using practical activity
30mins
What they need to stay healthy (water, light and a suitable temperature to grow
and stay healthy).
Extension activities for school
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6.
Grow a dried bean in a transparent pot to show growth of parts of the plant. Discover
how seeds are formed by observing the different stages of plant life cycles
over a period of time
Compare the effect of different factors on plant growth, for example, the amount of
light, the amount of fertiliser.
Explore the part that flowers play in the life cycle of flowering plants, including
pollination, seed formation and seed dispersal
Examine a variety of fruits. Cut up to look for patterns in the structure of fruits that
relate to how the seeds are dispersed.
Observe how water is transported in plants, for example, by putting cut, white
carnations into coloured water and observing how water travels up the stem to the
flowers.
Make simple guides or keys to explore and identify local plants and animals; making a
guide to local living things; raising and answering questions based on their observations.
Pupils test each other using own keys.
Pupils explore possible ways of grouping a wide selection of living things that include
flowering plants and non-flowering plants. Note: Plants can be grouped into categories
such as flowering plants (including grasses) and non-flowering plants, such as ferns and
mosses