New Project ESC@ESC: Plant Power Jr.: Plant Power Jr.

In the Plant Power Junior Unit of Study, students in grades 1 and 2 will explore and observe plants, their parts, how plants grow and are important to other living organisms. Students will engage in pre-visit activities in their classroom to activate their prior knowledge of plants and interact with texts about plant structures to generate questions about plants. During their field trip to the center they will have hands on experience learning about plant parts and growth, they will create a craft to help them identify the plant parts, and will explore the importance of plants to other living organisms through an animal encounter. Back in their classroom, students will engage in post-visit activities to extend their understanding. They will journal the growth of a seed into a plant. The seed is brought back from GESC. Students will learn about what plants need as they observe the plant grow and change over time. Then they will express what they have learned through the creation of a communally created informational mural and the unit will culminate in a reflection on their learning.

The Unit of Study is built using the Stripling Model of Inquiry. Connect and Wonder stages contain pre-visit activities. The students visit the Genovesi Environmental Study Center for the Investigate stage. Construct, Express and Reflect stages contain post-visit activities.