Meet and Greet and Grow
This activity is adapted from the Learning for a Sustainable Future (LSF) “Food for Thought” resource, which helps students understand food—where our food comes from, how our global food system impacts our planet and our health, the concept of “food miles”, how plants grow and what they need, and how to grow their own food. For more curriculum-connected, teacher-reviewed activities, visit Learning for a Sustainable Future’s “Resources for Rethinking” database at www.R4R.ca.
Grades: 7-8
Time: 30 minutes
Learning Outcomes:
Students will review the parts of a plant and understand the relationship between plants and the vegetables/fruits that we eat.
Description:
Students will break into smaller groups to learn about fruits, roots, flowers, stems, and leaves.
Materials:
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Markers
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Variety of real vegetables (preferred) or vegetable pictures of your choice: tomatoes, broccoli, asparagus, lettuce, potatoes, carrots, etc.
NOTE: Decide upon a home for the ‘used’ food after the activity and inform the students about your plan (for example, are you comfortable taking it home and cooking it? Is there a pet that would eat it? Compost?)
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Divide students into small groups. Give each group a sheet of Post-it® Easel Pad paper and have them create a large chart with 3 columns similar to the one below:
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Part of Plant |
Function of Part |
Examples of Foods |
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Roots |
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Stems |
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Leaves |
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Flowers |
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Fruit |
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Seeds |
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In a box or somewhere hidden from the students’ view, recreate the information cards on Post-it® Notes—1 for each plant structure below: fruits, roots, flowers, stems, seeds and leaves. Ask for 6 volunteers to play charades and act out the plant structures. Students come up, pick a card, and take turns acting out their structure. Other students guess the plant part and function. Complete column 2 of the chart as you go.
Information for Cards:
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Roots |
Roots take up water and nutrients from the soil. Thick roots also store energy for the plant. |
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Stems |
Stems connect the roots to the leaves. Stems are full of tiny straws that carry liquids up and down. |
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Leaves |
Leaves are the green energy factories that make sugar from sunlight and simple chemicals. |
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Flowers |
Flowers are the male and female parts of the plant that make the seeds. |
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Fruit |
Fruit is the ripened ovary and seeds of a flowering plant. Fruits are the way that flowering plants spread seeds. |
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Seeds |
Seeds are a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. |
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In small groups, provide students with real foods or pictures of foods (use tomato, carrot, lettuce, broccoli, radish, asparagus, bok choy, beans, peas, etc). Ask them to sort the various vegetables (real or pictures) into either: fruits, roots, flowers, stems or leaves and list the appropriate fruits and vegetables in column 3.
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Check whether all items were sorted properly.
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Try to think of 3-4 more foods for each category and add to column 3. See below for help:
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Plant Part |
Examples |
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Roots |
Carrots, Beets, Turnips, Rutabagas, Radishes, Parsnips |
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Seeds |
Kidney (and other) Beans, Green beans, Sunflower (and other) Seeds, Peas |
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Fruit |
Tomato, Apple, Cucumber, Oranges, Blueberries |
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Flowers |
Broccoli, Cauliflower, Nasturtiums, Squash blossoms |
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Leaves |
Lettuce, Spinach, Cabbage, Collards, Bok choy, Kale |
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Stems |
Celery, Rhubarb, Onions |
Follow Up:
Discuss which fruits and vegetables are the students’ favourites. Have they ever tried growing their own food? Could you grow food in your classroom or school yard? For more curriculum-connected, teacher-reviewed activities, visit Learning for a Sustainable Future’s “Resources for Rethinking” database at www.R4R.ca.
