Plant+Press+Project

=Field Study 1: Plant Press Project= toc Our mission is to build our own Field Guide with native and invasive species of plants growing in the wild here in Waltham. No, not the exotic flowers and vegetables growing in your mom's garden at home, but the WILD plants growing on their own outside our classroom window. The first step in creating our field guides is research and collection. =Day 1: Key Questions= 1. What is a PlantPress? What are they used for? Find out how to use it and what materials we need. 2. What species of plants do we expect to find outside our school? Research common flora of Massachusetts to build a list of what we will find during this field study. 3. How will we know when we find these plants? Dichotmous Plant Activity


 * 1. What is a PlantPress? What are they used for? Find out how to use it and what materials we need.**

A plant press is a tool used to press and dry out plants for a long period of time. Materials we would need to make a plant press would be


 * 2. What species of plants do we expect to find outside our school? Research common flora of Massachusetts to build a list of what we will find during this field study.**

=Day 2: Rubric and Dichotomous Key Practice=



Homework: Post your reflection of today's activities and question on the [|Discussion Page].

=Day 3: Simple v. Compound Leaves= __Do Now (5 min)__: Plants grow on every continent of the Earth (Even Antarctica! ). Given the wide variety of climates and soil conditions throughout our planet, you could imagine how different these plants must be from place to place. Draw a picture or make a list of as many different types of plants you can think of.

__Classroom Activity (15 min)__: Click through this quick slide show to learn the difference between Simple and Compound leaves. Don't worry about the angiosperm flower slides (we will get to that later if there's time). Concentrate on the leaf structures and make note of the following vocabulary terms (I will be asking you to identify them once we get outside):

Opposite Alternate Whorled Petiole Petiolule Rachis Bud Pinnately Palmately

__Outside Activity (20 min)__: Get your clip boards, field guides, rubrics and rain coats! We are going to ID some TREES!!

__Wrap-Up (10 min)__: Gather back in Room 218. Discuss progress and week-end homework assignment. Post Reflection Question #2 on [|Discussion Page]

=Day 4+5: Observing and Recording Key Components= __Do Now (15 min)__: What are the Key Components of a Tree? []

__Outside Activity: Taking Quality Pictures (15 min)__ - Framing your photo - Context

__Uploading Photos to Wiki (15 min)__ - Create a Folder - Captions - Key Words

//**Homework: [|Reflections]and Glossary additions**//

**Helpful Links:**

 * Parts of the Leaf**