Day 1: invitation to problem based learning 

 pizza challenge
o Steps of making a pizza
o Ingredients 
 What do we need to know to make pizza?
o How do we make pizza?
o What are the ingredients?
o Where do the ingredients come from?

Later in the day 

 What is pizza?

Day 2: What do plants need to live?

 Opening (open-ended question, or noticing time)
o .Discuss what humans need to survive.
o We have some of the same needs as plants

 Body (guided experience, noticing, guided practice) 

o Introduce the plant growing experiment. Make predictions. 
o Each student will grow their own plant. 
o We are going to grow some plants in different spots of the classroom to see if
they need water, light.
o Watching for plants need to live. (telling the students)
o Watch a short video on what plants need to grow.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUBIQ1fTRzI. 
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDjFZVqiLvY.  
o Discuss what plants need to grow (from video). Turn and talk
o What do plants need to grow activity. 

 Closure 
o What do you think is the most important thing that plants need?
 Materials
o Soil
o Seeds
o Small dixie cups 
o Water 
o What do plants need to grow paper
o Promethean board
o Computer 

Day 3: How do seeds grow? What are seeds?

Opening (open-ended question, or noticing time)
 Check on planted seeds around the classroom!
 Why are seeds important?
Body (guided experience, noticing, guided practice) 
  Ask students to identify where plants come from and what plants need to grow. 
 In one hand, show students a live plant, and in the other hand, show students a few
seeds. 
 All students will Sort and compare different seeds. (what do you notice? How are they
alike? How are they different? Color, size, shape).
 Plants grow and change (how do you think the seed grows and changes?) seeds grow
and develop into plants with the help of soil, water, and sunshine.
o Lima bean : What is inside a seed? (there is a tiny plant inside a seed). 
o Seed embryo modeling 
o Students try it on their own seed.
 Ask what different seeds will grow (ex. Tomato seed= tomatoes, apple seeds=apples,
sunflowers)
 Sunflower craft. (with real sunflower seeds). Add sunflower seeds!
Closure (reflection, next time)
 Why do you think seeds are important? 
 Next time we are going to find out what happens when a seed is in the soil for a while. 
Materials
 Real plant
 Bunch of different seeds
 Sunflower seeds
 White paper plate
 Blue and green construction paper
 Pencil 
 Promethean board 
 Computer 

Day 4: What do roots do? How are roots important? 

Opening (open-ended question, or noticing time)
 Check on plants in classroom!
 Why are roots important?

Body (guided experience, noticing, guided practice) 

 Show Mrs. Harris plant with roots? 
o What do you notice about the roots?
 Show slide of different roots? 
o What do you notice about these roots? 
o Not all roots look the same. Some roots are teeny tiny and some are giant. 
 Read from big science book.
o Today we are going to take a look at some different roots that I brought in. 
 Bring in plant roots for students to observe.
o I model how to look at root- Students observe roots. 
o Students come up to circle to watch me draw and label
o (I model, Practice on a seed and label-  (white, smooth, round)
o students will draw what they see and add 2 labels. (each student will have a
 root).
o Students will clean up and wash hands
 Listen for the 2 types of roots and what the roots do. 
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJJlNXTFpkk. 
 A root has 3 different functions for a plant. 1. Absorption of water 2. Anchoring of the
plant body to the ground and supporting it. 3. Storage of food and nutrients.
 The wind blows hard. But the tree does not blow away. What keeps it in place? (tell
me how you know). 
 (why are roots important?) 
 Next time we are going to talk about what happens next after the roots grow. 
Closure 
 What would happen if plants didn't have roots? (write about it)
Materials
 Promethean board
 computer
 Real roots
 Paper plates 
 Recording sheet for labeling and drawing.

Day 5: What parts do plants have? What do the plants parts do?
Opening  (open-ended question, or noticing time)
 Picture of a plant/flower (pictures of plants for students to sort)
 How are the plants similar? How are they different? (colors, height, flowers)
Body (guided experience, noticing, guided practice) 
 Read from big book.
 Parts of a plant- roots, stems, leaves and seeds flowers, fruit. 
 Each part of the plant has a different role ( leaves- make food for a plant, stems- hold
plants up and bring water and food to different parts of the plant). 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zvGv8yVE9s. 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vjISSBcHCg. 
Closure 
 What are the parts of a plant?
 Use the sunflower they made and have the students label the part of the plant
(roots, stem, leaves, seeds, flower)
Materials
 Promethean board
 Computer
 Sunflower craft to label the parts
 What did you see outside (drawing a picture what you saw). 

Day 6: Make pizza day!

 Inform students that they should pretend to be “Plant Hunters” as you go on a
guided walk around the school or other outside area nearby area that features
a variety of plants. Remind students that they are looking for the parts of
the plants and how they are similar or different
o Have students take clipboards and paper to draw and write what they
 see outside with different plants, big/small, color. 
o Come back inside and reflect on what the students saw outside. 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8fthWzzGto. 
 Review the parts of the plants. 
 Pizza crust- wheat
 Pizza sauce- tomato plants
 Cheese- milk from cows.
 Pizza party!