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Superbloom

Superbloom
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There is a very special place in California, USA. It is called Death Valley. Let’s go into Death Valley and see what it is like.
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Discuss. What did you notice about Death Valley? What do you think the weather is like here, and what do you see that makes you think that?
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Death Valley is one of the hottest and driest places on Earth. It almost never rains. There are many days every year when it is over 100°F (38°C)! The wind you heard in the video would feel like the hot air from a hair dryer.
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Some plants can survive in Death Valley. But it is too hot and dry for most plants. Look closely—can you spot any plants in this picture?
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Year after year, Death Valley is a place where very few plants can grow. But something amazing happened in 1998. Death Valley suddenly changed. Go to the next video to see what it looked like!
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It was amazing! In the spring of 1998, some places in Death Valley were completely covered in flowers.
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But just a few weeks later, Death Valley looked like this again. All of the flowers had dried up and disappeared.
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Discuss. Why do you think so many flowers bloomed in 1998? And why do you think the flowers dried up and disappeared after just a few weeks?
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After all of the flowers dried up in 1998, Death Valley stayed this way for a very, very long time. But in 2005, something amazing happened again.
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Suddenly, some parts of Death Valley were completely covered in flowers again! But just like before, they all dried up after just a few weeks. The flowers suddenly appeared, and suddenly disappeared.
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Then, Death Valley stayed this way again for years and years. It was very hot, and very dry.
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Then, in 2016, it happened again! So many flowers bloomed. They lasted for a few weeks, and then they dried up and disappeared. These two pictures show the exact same place in Death Valley when there is and isn’t a superbloom!
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When the flowers bloom like this, it is called a superbloom.
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Whenever the same things happen again and again in the same order, we call it a cycle. This is the superbloom cycle. Discuss. What happens in each part of the superbloom cycle? How long does each part last?
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In this unit, you will try and solve the mystery of what causes the superbloom cycle to happen.
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Get a See-Think-Wonder Chart. Your teacher will add your ideas to the class chart.
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Look at these two pictures of the same place in Death Valley. What do you see in each one? Write what you see in the See column of your See-Think-Wonder Chart.
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What do you think might cause each part of the superbloom cycle? Write your thoughts in the Think column of your See-Think-Wonder Chart.
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What do you wonder about superblooms? Write your questions in the Wonder column of your See-Think-Wonder Chart.
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Different things must be making the different parts of the superbloom cycle happen. But we don’t know what those things are yet!
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This page shows the superbloom cycle for one place in Death Valley. You will write and draw what you think causes the superbloom cycle to happen.
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You will write and draw what you think today. You will be able to change this sheet as you learn more, so be sure to leave blank space for later.
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Let’s see how two students filled in the sheet.
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“I know it’s hot and dry in Death Valley, but I think it rains sometimes. Plants need rain to grow. You can see my drawing and what I wrote.”
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“I think flowers dry up when it stops raining. They crumble apart when they dry up. I wrote words, but I don’t think I need to draw anything here. I have space to add more later.”
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“I think the Sun helps plants grow. You can see my drawing and what I wrote. I still have space to write and draw more later.”
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“I think that even when the flowers have grown, they still need the Sun. So I drew it here, too. Then I think that after a while, it gets too hot. That makes the flowers dry up. I wrote that on my sheet.”
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Discuss. Which ideas do you agree with? Which do you disagree with? What other ideas do you think are missing?
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Step
01/03
Get a copy of the Superbloom Cycle worksheet. Write your name at the top.
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Step
02/03
Follow the instructions in the boxes. You will write words and draw pictures to explain what you think causes the superbloom cycle. Be sure to leave room to add more later.
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Step
03/03
If you have time, you can color in the superbloom flowers and draw more of your own. Then, keep your worksheet in a safe place. You will update your sheet after each lesson in this unit.
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It's time to do some investigations! In this unit, you'll learn about what plants need to grow and be healthy.

At the end of the unit, you will do a fun project and explore new things in Death Valley!

Have fun, and stay curious!

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Image & Video Credits

Mystery Science respects the intellectual property rights of the owners of visual assets. We make every effort to use images and videos under appropriate licenses from the owner or by reaching out to the owner to get explicit permission. If you are the owner of a visual and believe we are using it without permission, please contact us—we will reply promptly and make things right.

Other
A street sign in front of a vast desert landscape in Death Valley by Fumanyc
Adorable Afro American child thinking isolated on a white background by Gelpi
All illustrations by Alex Kalomeris
Badwater Road in Death Valley National Park during a stormy day. by Angel DiBilio
Blowing seeds off dandelion by Gaz_za
Dandelion Seeds Up Close View by Tracy Burroughs Brown
Death Valley National Park Super Bloom by Partha Sarathi Laha
Death Valley National Park, California/USA - Devil's Golf Course on an extremely hot summer day. by Helene Sauvageot
Death Valley National Park, Sign at the entrance of the Park by Jerome LABOUYRIE
Death Valley during Super bloom with a close up of Yellow flowers in the foreground and colorful mountains in the background by Cristina Guidi
Light rain sound by Jeffreys2
Paddle Cactus - Panamint Springs by David Brossard
Panoramic view of landscape at Death Valley National Park in California by visualLEH
Road to scenic Artists Drive in Death Valley National Park, California,USA by Alexander Demyanenko
Springtime 2005 by National Park Service
Super bloom of desert gold sunflowers (Geraea canescens) near Furnace Creek in Death Valley National Park, California. by Ovidiu Hrubaru
The view from Zabriskie Point in Death Valley National Park shows rugged hills formed by erosion by CrackerClips Stock Media
Tiny sprout is growing on sand by Rachata Teyparsit
Wildflowers in Death Valley, spectacular bloom by https://enterprise.shutterstock.com/g/KrisClifford
Wind Desert No Sand Sound by ProSoundEffects
dandelion field by LeOPL
dead wildflower in dry cracked earth by RhumbLine inc
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffhollettvancouverwa/25233388469/ by Jeff Hollett
pile sand isolated on white background by xpixel
young indian girl sitting on floor daydreaming by michaeljung
Credits

Activity Prep

Print Prep
Note: This lesson is part of this unit’s Anchor Layer. If you have the Anchor Layer turned on, we recommend teaching all lessons in the remainder of this unit in order.

The anchor phenomenon for this unit is an amazing burst of life in a place called Death Valley. How can huge fields of flowers suddenly grow in one of the hottest, driest places on Earth?

During the introduction, students generate observations and questions about the phenomenon and create an initial conceptual model to explain the phenomenon. You can split this introduction into two parts with a break in between: complete everything up through the See-Think-Wonder, and then complete everything after that point.

Students will gather clues during and after each lesson in this unit to help them improve their explanations. It is important to encourage students to recognize that even if they don't know the perfect answer yet, they are going to learn a lot throughout the unit and will have an opportunity to change or add to their first explanation.
Preview activity
Number of students:
Plant Adventures Teacher Guide teacher-only resource 1 per class
See-Think-Wonder worksheet 1 per class
Superbloom Cycle printout 1 per student
Prep Instructions

Before starting this lesson, review the unit Teacher Guide for an overview of the Plant Adventures Anchor Layer.

Set Up Your Classroom

Set up your classroom by creating a class "See-Think-Wonder" chart. We recommend using chart paper or a space on your board that won't be erased since you will revisit it throughout the unit. We recommend that you do a single class chart, and record student thinking on it. You may choose to also have each individual student complete their own chart, in which case you will need to print one copy of that chart per student.

Prepare Worksheets

Print one copy of the Superbloom Cycle worksheet for each student in your class.

Prepare a Place to Keep the Worksheets Safe

Students will revisit their worksheets as the unit progresses. If you are in a classroom, this is a great opportunity to make a bulletin board to display student work. This will make your students' thinking visible, and it will keep their sheets organized and ready to revisit as the unit progresses. Alternatively, you can keep the worksheets in a stack in a place where they can be easily retrieved after each of the first four lessons in this unit.

Extend this lesson