Plant Study Unit

Introduction

7^th Grade

Having completed the experiment to determine if soil organisms affect plant growth, students will write an introduction to their plant study using the teacher-created “guiding questions” worksheet.   

AZ standards:

Strand 1

PO 1 Choose an appropriate graphic representation for collected data:

• line graph • double bar graph • stem and leaf plot • histogram

PO 2  Display data collected from a controlled investigation.

PO 3 Communicate the results of an investigation with appropriate use of qualitative and quantitative information.

PO 5 Communicate the results and conclusion of the investigation.

Materials:

Collected DATA; paper and pencil

Safety:

n/a

Concept or conceptual understanding:

Students will recognize the value of reflection, synthesis, summarizing, and finalizing their own work and appreciate their published results.  

Learning objectives:

SWBAT complete ‘guiding questions’

SWBAT write a rough draft and final copy of their introduction

Lesson Procedures:

1- (teacher) introduce ‘guiding questions’ with discussion

2- (student) complete “guiding questions”

3- (teacher/student) discuss responses, share ideas, and finalize thoughts

4- (student) write an introduction for their lab report

Assessment:

Completed INTRODUCTION

List supplementary materials:

Students will need their data from the experiment

Guide questions for writing the Lab Report:

Introduction

Answer each of the following questions in 2-3 complete sentences.            

1. What was the purpose of our experiment?

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2. Why was this experiment important to do?

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3. List some soil organisms that you might find in the live soil

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4. How could the different soil organisms affect plant growth?

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5. Why did we test three different plant species

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6. What were your hypotheses for the experiment and how did you come up with them?

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7. Now string together your answers from the questions above into paragraph format.  Remember: begin each paragraph with a topic sentence.  A topic sentence is a sentence that explains the main point of the paragraph.

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