Elementary Lesson Plan

Your Name: Leah Bromaghim

Subject: (circle one) Language Arts

Grade Level: (circle one) K 1 2 3 4 5 6

Social Studies
Mathematics
Science

Lesson Title: Dissecting a Flower

Materials Needed: flowers to dissect, newspaper, tubs to collect the dirt, lab worksheets, magnified
glasses, pencils
Prerequisite Skills: knowledge of parts of plants, ability to follow directions
Standard(s):
S.35.LS.1 - Essential Concept and/or Skill: Understand and apply knowledge of organisms and their
environments
S.35.SI.2 - Essential Concept and/or Skill: Recognize that scientists perform different types of
investigations
(taken from iowacore.gov)
Lesson Objective(s):
Students will be able to take apart a plant and identify the different parts.
Set up:
-put out newspaper across the tables and tape down if necessary
-set out three bins and flowers in each
-have a lab sheet for each student and pencil ready
-write I can statements on the board
-write vocabulary = dissect and investigate
-post flower diagram with labels on it
-draw picture of flower with no labels yet
1. Provide objectives: (What are students going to learn?) Time: 5 min
Introduce todays lesson: Dissection and Investigation of a plant!
Since we have been talking about plants this week I thought I would give you all a chance
to investigate or look into/explore a plant in class today with our hands! I have brought in flowers for
us to dissect. They are called pansies. Dissect means to take apart and look at the insides. When you go
to middle school and high school you might get a chance to dissect a different type of living creature,
like a frog or rat, but we are starting you out with some flowers!
Before we start or get too far ahead of ourselves, we need to look at some I can statements
that Ive posted over here on the board. The first thing I want to focus on is the first I can statement:
I can take apart a plant and identify the different parts.
We will do this together and you will also complete a lab worksheet.
The second I can statement is my expectation for you.
I can stay on task during a hands-on lesson, behave like a responsible leader, and still have fun.
If we cannot stay on task, we wont need to do fun lessons like this anymore. And, as a reminder, I get
to decide how many stickers you get today! And there might be new prizes in the prize box soon

Before we start, I would really quickly like to go around and have you each name one part of this
flower Ive drawn on the board. (looking for root, stem, petal, leaf) This will be a helpful resource to us
when we do our dissection shortly. I have also post our flower diagram with labels already matched up,
I am going to go through and say the word and want you to repeat it back to me petal petal sepal
sepal, etc etc.
2. Demonstrate knowledge or skill: (Input/Modeling by the teacher) Time: 5 min
Okay next I want to let you know that when working with these flowers, we will be taking them apart
and plucking off parts and cutting things apart, however, I want to ask you all to be gentle when
working with the flower, we will be looking for certain parts as we go through the dissection and in
order to see each part we need to be gentle and not wreck our subject.
When I say go you will all come over to your bins with your flower inside. You will follow
directions on the lab worksheet as we go through. Feel free to ask questions or inquire about something
you are wondering.
3. Provide guided practice: (Guided practice with the teacher)
Time: 10 min
What does the first one say? okay lets do that! We can color it later. I want to see what you can label
on your drawing.
Carry on through the numbers while providing help and support.
Work at asking some open-ended questions and keeping the lesson engaging. Redirect and be more
enthused as needed.
4. Check for understanding and provide student feedback: (How will you know students
understand the skill or concept? How will they know they get it?)? Time: 5 min
Before you start ask for their level of understanding: thumbs up, middle or down for understanding
directions.
Be engaged in student learning and discussion, formative assess throughout lesson by asking open
ended questions and taking mental note of how student progress.
5: Provide extended practice and transfer: (Independent practice of the skill) Time:
Using diagrams with labels to figure out the parts on a flower. Individually working with a flower.
6. Assessment / Closure: (How do you evaluate student progress or provide closure to this lesson?)
Time: 2 min
How they do on the lab worksheet.
Exit Slip: tell me one thing you discovered/enjoyed about this lesson AND write down a question you
still have about plants that we can explore in the future.

7. Plans for differentiation:

Will be differentiated for kindergarten and first by just having them draw a picture of the flower and
label it after having a hands-on experience. During the experience with the flower, I will ask questions
with starters like Where is the _________? (petal, leaves, stem, etc.)

TOTAL LESSON TIME: ___40min___

8. References Consulted (Curriculum books in Drake SOE curriculum lab, teacher resources,
websites, etc.):
Adventures in Life Science 1987 David S Lake Publishers
Iowacore.gov

PlantInvestigationandDissection!

Name_______________________

Checkoffthetasksasyouwork
throughthembelow.

1. Observe flower and

draw a picture of it in
the box to the right.
2. Label all of the parts
you can see.
3. How many leaves are
on your plant?
______________
4. Examine the petals.
Remove and count
them.
How many are there? __________________
What color are they? _______________________
5. Locate the pistil and stigma.
6. Locate and remove a stamen. Examine under the magnified
glass.
7. Locate the ovary. Split the ovary open with your fingernail.
Are there eggs inside? If so, how many? _________________
Use a magnified glass if you need to.
8. On the back, tell me:
a. one thing you discovered/enjoyed about this lesson

b.

a question you still have about plants that we can

explore in the future.