04 Plants, Trees, and Gardens

👩‍🏫 Teacher’s Guide

Objective

Students will explain how plants and trees affects their daily lives and describe specific ways they can care for Earth.

Vocabulary

photosynthesis, oxygen, roots, seed, garden

Teaching Notes

• Start with a quick class chat: “What do you think ‘Our World’ means?” List student ideas.
• Connect to students’ lives with simple questions about home, school, weather, or nature in their neighborhood.
• Read or summarize a short passage about this topic, pausing to unpack tricky words in kid-friendly language.
• Model one think-aloud where you show how a choice (like reusing, saving water, or planting) helps our planet.
• Invite students to share examples from their own lives, then guide them to write and draw their ideas.
• Use the hands-on activity as a chance to practice observing, recording, and talking about changes and patterns.

🧒 Student Worksheet

Concept and Helping Material

Definition. Plants and trees give us food, oxygen, and materials, so taking care of them helps both people and the whole planet.

Helping ideas and samples:

• Try a quick sort, draw-and-label, or compare-and-contrast about this topic.
• Name one place you see this idea in class, at home, or in your community.
• Think about how this idea connects to your choices every day.
• Safety note if needed: Follow your teacher’s directions and ask before using water, tools, or outdoor materials.

Vocabulary and Definition

• — the way green plants make food using sunlight, air, and water
• — a gas in the air that people and animals need to breathe
• — the parts of a plant that grow underground and take in water
• — a small part of a plant that can grow into a new plant
• — a place where people grow plants on purpose

Words to Learn

, , , ,

Sentences to Fill In

1. 04 Plants and Trees connects to and our everyday lives.

2. We can help plants and trees by .

3. A pattern we notice in this topic is between actions and the planet.

4. One new fact I learned about plants and trees is .

5. I can explain this topic to a friend by .

Think & Respond Q&A

1. Why are plants important for our breathing?

2. How do plants get energy to make their own food?

3. What is one way trees help your community?

4. What plant foods do you eat most often?

5. How can having a garden help Earth?

6. What do roots do for a plant?

7. Why do gardeners need to think about sunlight and water?

8. What is one way you can care for a plant at home or school?

9. Why should people learn the names of local trees and plants?

10. How does planting even one tree make a difference?

Hands-On Experiment or Activities

Seed-in-a-Cup Observation

What You Need: paper cups or small containers, soil or damp paper towels, seeds (such as beans), water, and a science journal.

What You Do: 1) Place soil or damp paper towel into the cup and gently tuck a seed inside. 2) Add a little water so the soil or towel is moist, not soaked. 3) Put cups in a warm place with light and check them daily. 4) Draw and write about what you see as the seed sprouts and grows.

Think and Talk:

• What changed?
• What stayed the same?

Reflection

• What did you learn about 04 plants and trees?
• What is one change you can make this week to help our planet?
• How did today’s activity make you feel about plants and trees?