Plant Classification Webquest
8th grade Science
Introduction
Aliens have just approached you from an undiscovered planet in the Andromeda galaxy near the star cloud known to us as NCG 206. The aliens are in desperate need of your help. Their atmosphere is changing to become more like Earth's. They have discovered that if they don't begin growing plants within the next few months, as their winter ends, their planet will not be able to replenish the oxygen to which they are now accustomed. Without plants, not only will their oxygen levels in the air begin to drop but they will start to run out of food. The entire food web will disintegrate and all life on their planet will cease to exist. This is the only planet they could find that even comes close what their atmosphere is changing to and after years of studying our planet they know that plants like ours is what their planet needs. The Aliens are depending on your scientific team to give them the knowledge that they need.
TASK
Your job is to teach the Aliens about plants and the best way to grow plants. You will be creating a book for the Aliens to take back to their planet with them. The following items should be included in your journal to the Aliens:
1. Tell the Aliens what plants they need to grow.
2. Explain the uses for plants.
3. Explain how scientists on this planet classify plants.
4. Describe the parts of a plant - include a diagram, labeling each section and its function.
5. Describe pollination - the life cycle of the flower.
6. Describe the four major components of soil.
7. Explain the process of photosynthesis and transpiration.
8. Describe the uses of hydroponics.
9. Design a garden - use six different plants and position them in the most effective areas.
1. Tell the Aliens what plants they need to grow.
2. Explain the uses for plants.
3. Explain how scientists on this planet classify plants.
4. Describe the parts of a plant - include a diagram, labeling each section and its function.
5. Describe pollination - the life cycle of the flower.
6. Describe the four major components of soil.
7. Explain the process of photosynthesis and transpiration.
8. Describe the uses of hydroponics.
9. Design a garden - use six different plants and position them in the most effective areas.
Process
In your team (2-3 students) you will research the above tasks. Your team has only this week to complete the book for the Aliens because their ship will be ready for the return trip home by then. It's a very complicated process to be able to travel millions of light years and return at the moment they left. It's similar to time travel and they cannot miss their launch date. Your answers must be completed in the above order in your brochure. Your team will only be required to complete one brochure so you must all work together on this. You must have complete sentences and your diagrams should be neat and clearly labeled. Your team will be responsible for spelling, especially when your team directly copies from your resources. Look below at the evaluation for a clear picture of what this project needs!
Step 1
Start by completing The Great Plant Escape! Go on to Step 2 when you are done.
Step 2
Go to Trees of the Pacific Northwest. Learn more about some common conifers in the Pacific Northwest. Use a dichotomous key to identify a conifer specimen. Discover the identity of a mystery tree! In other words, do the three on the bottom of the webpage.
Step 3
Go to Kid's World - Plant Nutrition and complete all the exercises there.
Step 4
Download the following documents to the desktop, open them one at a time and copy what's there onto your notebook (draw the leaves the best you can):
| leaf_shapes.doc |
| leaf_margins.doc |
| groupings.doc |
| venation.doc |
Step 5
Now you can start dividing the labor. Each person in your team should be responsible for an equal number of questions from the task. Being responsible means that you will be graded on your section of the book. There are books in the back of the room that can help you if you need more resources. The rest of the team should support you while you are researching your questions. In other words, you are never to work alone while your teammates do nothing.
Step 6
When you are done with your brochure evaluate yourselves and your work.
