Why do plants grow flowers?

Why do plants grow flowers?

Lesson narration:
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DISCUSS:

Why are bees important? What do you know about “pollination”?

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DISCUSS (1 of 4):

Can you find the pollen dusters and the stigma on this flower?

Poppy

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DISCUSS (2 of 4):

Can you find the pollen dusters and the stigma on this flower?

Daffodil

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DISCUSS (3 of 4):

Where are the pollen dusters and the stigma on this flower?

Cinquefoil

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DISCUSS (4 of 4):

Now that you know the stigma needs pollen on it, in order for the seed pod to grow, what can you do in your greenhouse?

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DISCUSS:

So now what would you do, in order to get your vanilla plants to form seed pods?

Reveal answer…

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DISCUSS:

What other animals drink nectar from flowers? (Hint... Think of other animals you’ve noticed hanging around flowers.)

Here are some examples we thought of…

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flower


1 of 10

the reproductive part of some plants that can make seeds
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nectar


2 of 10

a sugary liquid that plants make
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pollen


3 of 10

a powder plants make that is involved in plant reproduction
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stamen


4 of 10

the part of a flower that has pollen
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stigma


5 of 10

the sticky part of a flower that pollen can stick to
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pollination


6 of 10

the process of moving pollen from one part of a flower (the stamen) to another part of a flower (the stigma)
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model


7 of 10

a pretend version of something that scientists use when the real thing is too big, small, or complicated to work with
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seed


8 of 10

a part of a plant that can grow into a baby plant
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reproduction


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a stage in the life cycle of living things when they have offspring
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offspring


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babies
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Image & Video Credits

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Exploration
lemonade stand by Joshua Ommen , used under CC BY-SA
ice cream by Davgood Kirshot
grocery store aisle by Bidgee , used under CC BY-SA
chocolate syrup by Daniel Oines , used under CC BY-SA
ice cream by stu_spivack , used under CC BY-SA
Vanilla Beans by Alphaomega1010 , used under CC BY-SA
vanilla seed pods by B.navez , used under CC BY-SA
trowel by walkersalmanac
plant with dying flowers by Image used under license from Shutterstock.com: Kletr
greenhouse by Pastorius , used under CC BY-SA
Vanilla pompona by H. Zell , used under CC BY-SA
person on laptop by Image used under license from Shutterstock.com: Andrey Popov
bees/flowers by MrWallybutler
bee/flower by Bernie Kohl
lavender seeds by Hans Braxmeier
babies by Image used under license from Shutterstock.com: Gelpi JM
sprout by lanailic
spring flower w/bee by Dirk Fuhlert
bee with pollen by gailhampshire , used under CC BY-SA
George Washington Carver by Alabama Department of Archives and History , used under Public Domain
plant pollen by Madecasse
clock in grass by Alexas_Fotos
Vanilla bahiana by Orchi , used under CC BY-SA
kid with headache by espies
bee/rose by motoronna
lily flower by Image used under license from Shutterstock.com: AN NGUYEN
animated grad cap by ClkerFreeVectorImages
animated mag glass by OpenClipartVectors
bee inside flower by Image used under license from Shutterstock.com: ileana_bt
bee flower pollen by Vita Serendipity
bee tongue by pam newcombe
animated juicebox by OpenClipartVectors
maple syrup by Miguel Andrade
tree by Bruce Marlin , used under CC BY-SA
sugar by 422737
sugar cane by parhessiastes , used under CC BY-SA
Activity
white lily by alex grichenko
two bees by Waugsberg , used under CC BY-SA
Lesson narration:

Activity Prep

Print Prep

In this lesson, students learn how and why flowers are pollinated. In the activity, Make a Flower, students make flower models out of paper and bee models out of pipe cleaners. Students fly their bees from flower to flower and observe what happens to the flower’s pollen during this process.

Preview activity

Exploration

31 mins

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