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Science lesson plan · 2nd grade (Year 3 in England) · 60 minutes

Plant growth experiments: read the results

Plants

CCSS NGSS.2-LS2-1CCSS NGSS.SEP 4England: KS1 Y2 PlantsEngland: KS1 Working scientifically

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Plant growth experiments: read the results.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: What plants need to grow; Test what a plant needs: light and water

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Real plants or seeds, Hand lenses, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 6 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (What plants need to grow; Test what a plant needs: light and water). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Which of these does a plant need to grow well? (sweets / darkness all day / light / loud music) → lightPrompt: What does a plant get from the Sun?
  2. To test if plants need light, what must be the SAME for both plants? (only the colour of the pot matters / the amount of light / nothing, everything should be different / the water, the soil and the type of plant) → the water, the soil and the type of plantPrompt: We only want to change one thing.
  3. What plants need: which statement is true? (Plants never need water. / Plants grow best in the dark. / The more water you give a plant, the better it always grows. / Plants need light to grow well.) → Plants need light to grow well.Prompt: Think about what keeps a plant healthy.

Hook · 6 min

  • Bring in a plant that has been kept in the dark next to one in the light, and ask what happened.
  • Share the objective: Plant growth experiments: read the results. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 12 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: A sunflower seedling was 3 cm tall on Monday. Two weeks later it was 17 cm tall. How many centimetres did it grow?
  • Step 1: 17 − 3 = 14
  • Step 2: So the answer is: 14 cm
  • Answer: 14 cm
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 12 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. A bean plant was 3 cm tall on Monday. Two weeks later it was 15 cm tall. How many centimetres did it grow? → 12 cmPrompt: Growth is the change in height.
  2. A plant kept in the dark grew tall, thin and pale. What do the results suggest? (Darkness is the best way to grow plants. / Pale plants are the healthiest. / It had too much light. / It was stretching to find light and could not make enough food.) → It was stretching to find light and could not make enough food.Prompt: Being tall is not the same as being healthy.

You do: independent practice · 17 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 7 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. A bean plant was 3 cm tall on Monday. Two weeks later it was 14 cm tall. How many centimetres did it grow? → 11 cmPrompt: Growth is the change in height.
  2. A plant kept in the dark grew tall, thin and pale. What do the results suggest? (It was stretching to find light and could not make enough food. / It had too much light. / Darkness is the best way to grow plants. / Pale plants are the healthiest.) → It was stretching to find light and could not make enough food.Prompt: Being tall is not the same as being healthy.

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: What plants need to grow.
  • Use concrete materials: real plants or seeds.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-2.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Plant growth experiments: read the results

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    Which is the best way to measure how much a plant has grown?

    • A. Weigh the pot only once.
    • B. Measure its height with a ruler at the start and the end.
    • C. Guess by looking at it.
    • D. Count its roots every day by digging it up.

  2. Question 2

    A bean plant was 2 cm tall on Monday. Two weeks later it was 15 cm tall. How many centimetres did it grow?

    Answercm

  3. Question 3

    Three bean plants were grown for two weeks in different conditions. The chart shows their heights in cm. Which plant grew best?

    Plant height after 2 weeks (cm)0246810121416182019light and water12water, no light4light, no water
    • A. light and water
    • B. water, no light
    • C. light, no water

  4. Question 4

    Why is it better to grow five plants in each group instead of just one?

    • A. More plants make the test faster.
    • B. It makes the chart more colourful.
    • C. One plant might be unusual; more plants give more reliable results.
    • D. Plants are lonely on their own.

  5. Question 5

    A sunflower seedling was 2 cm tall on Monday. Two weeks later it was 16 cm tall. How many centimetres did it grow?

    Answercm

  6. Question 6

    Three bean plants were grown for two weeks in different conditions. The chart shows their heights in cm. Which plant grew least?

    Plant height after 2 weeks (cm)0246810121416182020light and water12water, no light4light, no water
    • A. light and water
    • B. water, no light
    • C. light, no water

  7. Question 7

    Ana wants to test whether plants need water. She gives one plant water and one none. What else must she do?

    • A. Give the dry plant extra sunlight to make up for it.
    • B. Put the watered plant in a dark cupboard.
    • C. Use a different type of plant for each.
    • D. Keep the light, soil, pot and type of plant the same.

  8. Question 8

    A tomato seedling was 2 cm tall on Monday. Two weeks later it was 10 cm tall. How many centimetres did it grow?

    Answercm

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Answer key: Plant growth experiments: read the results

  1. 1. B. Measure its height with a ruler at the start and the end.

  2. 2. 13 cm

  3. 3. A. light and water

  4. 4. C. One plant might be unusual; more plants give more reliable results.

  5. 5. 14 cm

  6. 6. C. light, no water

  7. 7. D. Keep the light, soil, pot and type of plant the same.

  8. 8. 8 cm