HAPPY HALLOWEEN

PLANTS UNIT - WHY DO LEAVES CHANGE COLORS???

.

Why Do Leaves Change Color? Autumn from Thomas Rasel on Vimeo. Where do leaf colors come from? How do leaves change color? Do leaves change color because of weather? Why do leaves fall? While you were playing in the hot sun during summer vacation the trees on the streets, in the parks, and in the forests were working hard to keep you cool. To feed the shiny green leaves that make shade, trees use sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into sugar. This is called photosynthesis. Now it's autumn, and you're ready -- okay, almost ready -- to be back in school. Those hardworking trees, on the other hand, need to take a break from all that photosynthesizing. When leaves change color from green to yellow, bright orange, or red, you'll know that trees are beginning their long winter's rest. Where do leaf colors come from? Leaf color comes from pigments. Pigments are natural substances produced by leaf cells. The three pigments that color leaves are: chlorophyll (green) carotenoid (yellow, orange, and brown) anthocyanin (red) Chlorophyll is the most important of the three. Without the chlorophyll in leaves, trees wouldn't be able to use sunlight to produce food. Carotenoids create bright yellows and oranges in familiar fruits and vegetables. Corn, carrots, and bananas are just a few of the many plants colored by carotenoid. Anthocyanins add the color red to plants, including cranberries, red apples, cherries, strawberries and others. Chlorophyll and carotenoid are in leaf cells all the time during the growing season. But the chlorophyll covers the carotenoid -- that's why summer leaves are green, not yellow or orange. Most anthocyanins are produced only in autumn, and only under certain conditions. Not all trees can make anthocyanin. How do leaves change color? As the Earth makes its 365-day journey around the sun, some parts of the planet will get fewer hours of sunlight at certain times of the year. In those regions, the days become shorter and the nights get longer. The temperature slowly drops. Autumn comes, and then winter. Trees respond to the decreasing amount of sunlight by producing less and less chlorophyll. Eventually, a tree stops producing chlorophyll. When that happens, the carotenoid already in the leaves can finally show through. The leaves become a bright rainbow of glowing yellows, sparkling oranges and warm browns. What about red leaves? Read on. Do leaves change because of weather? Perhaps you've noticed that in some years, the red fall colors seem brighter and more spectacular than in other years. The temperature and cloud covercan make a big difference in a tree's red colors from year to year. When a number of warm, sunny autumn days and cool but not freezing nights come one after the other, it's going to be a good year for reds. In the daytime, the leaves can produce lots of sugar, but the cool night temperatures prevent the sugar sap from flowing through the leaf veins and down into the branches and trunk. Anthocyanins to the rescue! Researchers have found out that anthocyanins are produced as a form of protection. They allow the plant to recover nutrients in the leaves before they fall off. This helps make sure that the tree will be ready for the next growing season. Anthocyanins give leaves their bright, brilliant shades of red, purple and crimson. The yellow, gold and orange colors created by carotenoid remain fairly constant from year to year. That's because carotenoids are always present in leaves and the amount does not change in response to weather. The amount of rain in a year also affects autumn leaf color. A severe drought can delay the arrival of fall colors by a few weeks. A warm, wet period during fall will lower the intensity, or brightness, of autumn colors. A severe frost will kill the leaves, turning them brown and causing them to drop early. The best autumn colors come when there's been: a warm, wet spring a summer that's not too hot or dry, and a fall with plenty of warm sunny days and cool nights. Can you tell a tree from its colors? You can use fall leaf color to help identify different tree species. Look for these leaf colors on the trees in your neighborhood: (click on the tree species to see the tree shape, bark, fruit, and leaf shape.) Oaks: red, brown or russet Hickories: golden bronze Dogwood: purple-red Birch: bright yellow paper birch yellow birch Poplar: golden yellow Maple trees show a whole range of colors: Sugar Maple: orange-red Black Maple: glowing yellow Red Maple: bright scarlet Why do leaves fall? A tree's roots, branches and twigs can endure freezing temperatures, but most leaves are not so tough. On a broadleaftree -- say a maple or a birch -- the tender thin leaves, made up of cells filled with water sap, will freeze in winter. Any plant tissue unable to live through the winter must be sealed off and shed to ensure the tree's survival. As sunlight decreases in autumn, the veins that carry sap into and out of a leaf gradually close. A layer of cells, called theseparation layer, forms at the base of the leaf stem. When this layer is complete, the leaf is separated from the tissue that connected it to the branch, and it falls. Oak leaves are the exception. The separation layer never fully detaches the dead oak leaves, and they remain on the tree through winter. Evergreen trees -- pines, spruces, cedars and firs -- don't lose their leaves, or needles, in winter. The needles are covered with a heavy wax coating and the fluids inside the cells contain substances that resist freezing. Evergreen leaves can live for several years before they fall and are replaced by new growth. On the ground, fallen leaves are broken down by bacteria, fungi, earthworms and other organisms. The decomposed leaves restock the soil with nutrients, and become part of the spongy humus layer on the forest floor that absorbs and holds rainfall. In nature, nothing goes to waste!

Autumn from Thomas Rasel on Vimeo.

PLANT QUIZ 1

INSTRUCTIONS FOR QUIZ

1. Take the online QUIZ
2. Take the Vocab & Information Quiz
3. Complete the online Quiz and record your score on bottom of the Vocabulary Quiz Sheet
4. PLANTS QUIZ - ONLINE

SCIENCE NEWS - PORCUPINE #17

PORCUPINE

PLANT UNIT - GERMINATION EXPERIEMENT

SEED GERMINATION EXPERIMENT:

INSTRUCTIONS:
Each we will check on our seed glove.  Please note any changes, no matter how small.
RECORD:  note your observations in germination chart
REVIEW:  review the graphics of seed germination (below); you can use the graphics to help you be a detailed observer of your seed glove changes.

SCIENCE NEWS - FIRST LADY FRESH FOOD FIGHT #18

The First Lady is passionate about promoting healthy food choices for young people.

Jewel Samad / AFP / Newscom

Mrs. Obama encourages the food industry to actively market fruit, vegetables, whole grains and other fresh foods.

Jacquelyn Martin / AP Images

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

The First Lady’s Fresh Food Fight

Michelle Obama meets with top leaders in the food business to talk about how food is marketed to kids

By Tara Welty | for  

First Lady Michelle Obama recently gathered a group of powerful businesspeople from the food industry. The topic? How food, both healthy and unhealthy, is marketed (or promoted and advertised) to kids.
About 100 guests attended the event. They includedexecutives (top business leaders) from McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Hershey’s, and cereal maker General Mills. They were seated next to several journalists, many of whom disagree with the way these food companies promote foods that many nutritionists deem unhealthy.
PROGRESS AND PROBLEMS
The First Lady highlighted the progress that has been made in decreasing rates of childhood obesity. Obesity is the condition of being dangerously overweight. Mrs. Obama noted that between 2008 and 2011, obesity rates among low-income preschoolers dropped in 19 states. She also said that childhood obesity rates are falling in big cities like New York and Philadelphia, and in states like California and Mississippi.
However, she says that “we still have more work to do.” One in three kids are on track to develop type 2 diabetes. The First Lady also mentioned that in the United States, poor diet now causes more disease and early deaths than smoking cigarettes does.
Mrs. Obama challenged food and beverage companies to place limits on marketing foods high in salt, sugar, and fat to kids. She said that the average kid sees thousands of food advertisements each year. A vast majority—86 percent—of those ads are for junk foods, while kids see just one ad a week for healthy foods.
The First Lady then encouraged the food industry to actively market fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and other healthy foods to young people. “You guys know how to get kids excited,” she said. “Through the magic of marketing and advertising, all of you, more than anyone else, have the power to shape our kids’ tastes and desires.”
PESTER POWER
During the meeting, the First Lady used the term “pester power.” It’s utilized in the advertising industry to refer to kids’ ability to convince their parents to buy things. Mrs. Obama said that according to one study, 45 percent of kids’ requests in the grocery store are for candy, cookies, burgers, and fries. Only 3 percent are for fruits and vegetables.
Some companies are working to change this. Mrs. Obama praised Birds Eye and the Vidalia Onion Committee. These companies have used popular characters like iCarly and Shrek to increase their sales. Of course, these companies produce fresh vegetables. A bigger challenge is convincing companies that make processed foods to market more nutritious whole foods instead.
What do you think? Should corporations market healthier food choices to kids? If kids see more ads for fruits and veggies, will they be more likely to eat them?

SCIENCE NEWS - FARLEY #15

Farley the Red Panda

Farley, a young red panda, has been through a lot in his short life. Watch him grow and thrive under the care of his keepers.

FARLEY

PLANTS UNIT 1 - OVERVIEW

The SCOOBY DOO & THE GANG need your help to solve the Mystery of plant life! To solve this case, you must identify the different parts of plants, what each part does, and how plants grow. Good luck!

Start with the Case Brief.

Here are your goals and key ideas to learn in Case #1!

When you finish this case, you should be able to:

• List the important things needed for plant growth.
• Help in the growth of a living organism.
• Demonstrate knowledge and use of words related to seeds and plants.
• Read to find answers to questions.
• Describe and record observations.
• Listen for answers and new information.
• Describe how plants grow and what they need to grow.)

While you're solving the mysteries, pay special attention to these key ideas:

• Plants are made up of different parts. Each part has a certain job. These parts can also help us to identify plants.
• You can eat certain plant parts. They are important food sources for both humans and other animals.
• There are seven basic requirements that plants need in order to grow properly: temperature, light, water, air, nutrients, time, and room to grow.

Plants can be grown both indoors and outdoors for food, shelter, clothing, medicine, energy, and pleasure.

Plant Structure

Herbaceous plant	Woody Plant

Plants can be either herbaceous or woody. 

• Most herbaceous plants have stems that are soft, green, and contain little woody tissue. These plants are ones that die to the ground each year. Most annual and perennial flowers fall into this category along with vegetables and houseplants.

Life Cycle

A plant's life cycle describes how long a plant lives or how long it takes to grow, flower, and set seed. Plants can be either an annual, perennial, or biennial.

Annual

A plant that completes its life cycle in one growing season. It will grow, flower, set seed, and die.

Examples: Marigolds, tomatoes, and petunias.

Perennial

A plant that lives for 3 or more years. It can grow, flower, and set seed for many years. Underground parts may regrow new stems as in the case of herbaceous plants, or the stems may live for many years like woody plants (trees).

Examples: Daisies, chrysanthemums, and roses.

Biennial

A plant that needs two growing seasons to complete its life cycle. It grows vegetatively (produces leaves) one season. Then it goes dormant or rests over the winter. In the spring, it will begin to grow again and grow flowers, set seed, and die. The seed that is left behind on the ground germinates and the cycle begins again.

Examples: Parsley, carrots, and foxglove.

watch video = PARTS OF PLANTS

PARTS OF A PLANT

Plant Parts - Roots
Basic parts of most all plants are:

• roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds.

• The roots help provide support by anchoring the plant and absorbing water and nutrients needed for growth. They can also store sugars and carbohydrates that the plant uses to carry out other functions. 
• Plants can have either 
• a taproot system (such as carrots)  
• fibrous root system (such as turf grass). 
• In both cases, the roots are what carries the water and nutrients needed for plants to grow.

Plant Parts - Stems

Stems carry water and nutrients taken up by the roots to the leaves. 

the food produced by the leaves moves to other parts of the plant. 

The cells that do this work are called the xylem cells. They move water. The phloem cells move the food. Stems also provide support for the plant allowing the leaves to reach the sunlight that they need to produce food. Where the leaves join the stem is called the node. The space between the leaves and the stem is called the internode. You'll find out why this is so important as the mystery develops.

Plant Parts - Leaves

Leaves are the food making factories of green plants. Leaves come in many different shapes and sizes. Leaves can be simple. They are made of a single leaf blade connected by a petiole to the stem. An oak leaf or a maple leaf are examples. A compound leaf is a leaf made up of separate leaflets attached by a petiole to the stem like an ash or a locust.

Leaves are made to catch light and have openings to allow water and air to come and go. 

• The outer surface of the leaf has a waxy coating called a cuticle which protects the leaf. 
• Veins carry water and nutrients within the leaf.

Leaves are the site of the food making process called photosynthesis. 

• In this process, carbon dioxide and water in the presence of chlorophyll (the green pigment) and light energy are changed into glucose (a sugar). This energy rich sugar is the source of food used by most plants.
• Photosynthesis is unique to green plants! 
• Photosynthesis supplies food for the plant and oxygen for other forms of life.
• A green plant helped make the oxygen you are breathing today.

watch the video - Photosynthesis

PHOTOSYNTHESIS INTRODUCTION

Plant Parts - Flowers

Flowers not only look pretty but, in fact, are important in making seeds. 

Flowers have some basic parts.

The female part is the pistil. 

• The pistil usually is located in the center of the flower and is made up of three parts: 
• the stigma, style, and ovary. 
• The stigma is the sticky knob at the top of the pistil. It is attached to the long, tubelike structure called the style. 
• The style leads to the ovary that contains the female egg cells called ovules.

The male parts are called stamens and usually surround the pistil. The stamen is made up of two parts: the anther and filament. The anther produces pollen (male reproductive cells). The filament holds the anther up.

During the process of fertilization, pollen lands on the stigma, a tube grows down the style and enters the ovary. Male reproductive cells travel down the tube and join with the ovule, fertilizing it. The fertilized ovule becomes the seed, and the ovary becomes the fruit.

Petals are also important parts of the flower, because they help attract pollinators such as bees, butterflies and bats. You can also see tiny green leaf-like parts called sepals at the base of the flower. They help to protect the developing bud.

Plant Parts - Fruit

The fruit is the ripened ovary of a plant containing the seeds. After fertilization, the ovary swells and becomes either fleshy or hard and dry to protect the developing seeds. Many fruits help seeds spread (maple seeds). Many things we call vegetables are really fruits such as tomatoes, cucumbers, and beans.

Every seed is a tiny plant (embryo) with leaves, stems, and root parts waiting for the right things to happen to make it germinate and grow. Seeds are protected by a coat. This coat can be thin or thick and hard. Thin coats don't protect the embryo well. But thick coats can let the embryo survive some tough conditions.

The seed also contains a short-term food supply called the endosperm which is formed at fertilization but is not part of the embryo. It is used by the embryo to help its growth.

In the bean that is shown, the endosperm is no longer there. It has been used for the growth of the embryo, and most of its nutrients and energy are now in a different form within the tissues of the cotyledon.

• Plants with one cotyledon (like corn) are called monocots. 

• If they have two cotyledons (like beans), they are called dicots.

Seeds are a plant's way of getting from one area to another by either wind, water or animals.

PLANTS - VIDEOh

Growing Plants Indoors All plants need these seven things to grow: room to grow, the right temperature, light, water, air, nutrients, and time. Room to grow. All plants like to have room to grow. The above ground portions of the plant need space so leaves can expand and carry out the job of making food. Roots also need room to grow. Plants growing in small spaces will have their roots crowded, and that results in smaller amounts of growth. Temperature Most plants like temperatures that most humans like. Some may like warmer temperatures while others may prefer cooler temperatures for best growth. It is always good to know where plants come from so you can make them feel at home. Most plants like to have cooler temperatures at night and don't like to be in a drafty spot. Light Plants grown indoors like bright light. Windows facing the south or west have the best light. Try to place the plants close to the window to take advantage of all the light. The further away from the window, the darker it becomes. A plant will tell you when it isn't getting enough light, because its stems will be thin and it will lean toward the light. If you don't have a bright window, try using grow lights. Remember to have the light about six inches above the plants and leave it on for 14-16 hours each day. Growing Plants Indoors Water Water is important in the plant's ability to make and move nutrients. Without water or with too much water, a plant dies. For this reason, watering is an important part of plant care. Most plants like to be watered when the soil is slightly dry to the touch. When watering, moisten the soil by using enough water so that it starts to come out of the hole in the bottom of the container. (This is why it is important to use containers with drainage holes.) How often you water depends on a lot of things. Plant size, time of the year, and type of plant are a few. Your best guide, though, is to feel the soil. If you stick your finger one inch into the soil and it is dry, then water your plant. Air Plants use carbon dioxide in the air and return oxygen. Smoke, gases, and other air pollutants can damage plants. Nutrients Most of the nutrients that a plant needs are dissolved in water and then taken up by the plant through its roots. Fertilizers will help to keep the soil supplied with nutrients a plant needs. Don't apply too much too often. Fertilizer won't solve all of your plant problems, so make sure your plants have good light, good soil, and good drainage. The three most important nutrients arenitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium. Nitrogen is used for above ground growth. This is what gives plants a dark green color. Phosphorous helps plant cell division. It aids in flower and seed production and in the development of a strong root system. Potassium helps fight off disease and provides for strong stems. Time It takes time to grow and care for plants. Some plants require more time to grow than others. Getting plants to flower or fruit at a certain time can be challenging. Plants that normally grow outdoors need a certain number of days to flower or fruit. You can time plants to flower or fruit on a certain date. This is a good lesson in both plant science and math.

HOW PLANTS WORK  (CLICK ON THIS)

QUIZ YOURSELF ON PLANT PARTS.  Write the question & answer in your notes.  Pick the best answer.  Carries water and food through the plant.  Stem  Leaves  Roots  Flower  Fruit  Seed  Carries and protects the seed.  Stem  Leaves  Roots  Flower  Fruit  Seed  Allows the plant to reproduce.  Stem  Leaves  Roots  Flower  Fruit  Seed  Helps the plant to produce seeds.  Stem  Leaves  Roots  Flower  Fruit  Seed  Made of the blade and the petiole.  Stem  Leaves  Roots  Flower  Fruit  Seed  Take up nutrients and water.  Stem  Leaves  Roots  Flower  Fruit  Seed What Are the Parts of Plants?  Write the number & name the part of the plant.  Add drawing and names in you notes. Is part  a stem, leaves, roots, a flower, a fruit, or a seed?

VOCABABULARY TERMS & DEFINITIONS

Make sure to have your Vocab Terms & Definitions completed by: Friday, OCTOBER 11.

VOCAB QUIZ & BASIC PLANT INFORMATION- TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS

What Are the Parts of Plants?

What Are the Parts of Plants?

1.)  The stem carries water and food through the plant. A stem can be short or long.

2.)  the fruit of a plant carries and protects the seed. In this papaya (right), the part of the fruit we eat protects the seeds.

3.)  the seed of a plant allows the plant to reproduce.

4.)  the flower of a plant helps the plant to produce seeds. Its fragrance and color attract insects that pollinate the plant so it can reproduce.

5.)  the leaves of a plant are made of the blade and the petiole. The blade is usually the largest part of the leaf. The petiole is a stalk that supports the leaf blade.

6.)  the roots, which grow from the lower part of the plant, take up nutrients and water from the soil.

What Are the Parts of Plants?