Mentor Tip Sheet - Pollen and Pollination

30 Aug 2018 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

The purpose of this tip sheet is to help you as a scientist mentor anticipate and respond to students as they post online about their pollen and pollinator investigations.

Class Overview Template

03 Jan 2017

Please use this template to provide information to potential mentors for your classroom. Answer the prompts in this template, then copy and paste the whole text into the group overview. This will help mentors you invite to your group (i.e., invite to mentor one of your project...

Student Roster Template

03 Jan 2017

This is the template for teachers to complete and upload to the website - in the "Students" tab, in the "Projects" tab, in the classroom group.Please be aware:Only input students' first names, passwords and team assignments (e.g., 1, 2, 3, etc.).All passwords can be...

The Power of Sunlight - Supporting Materials

02 Sep 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

This resource contains several files and three videos referred to in the Teacher's Guide.Please click on the "Supporting Docs" tab above to access all of the files and videos for this module.A supporting link to a video clip on chloroplasts and starch in this...

Pollen Module - Table of Contents

16 Jun 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Please review the topics covered in this module via the Table of Contents.

Pollen Module Overview

16 Jun 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Abstract: This module provides great flexibility. You can choose some or all of the activities. Each section is posted in separate pdf files on the PlantingScience website, on the Plant Themes / Pollen page. Activity Set A is a basic orientation to plant anatomy in relation to where pollen is...

The Power of Sunlight - Toolkit

25 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

The PlantingScience Power of Sunlight Toolkit provides background, materials lists, detailed procedures, and safety considerations for additional experimental methods related to photosynthesis and respiration. These tools can provide students the opportunity to ask a wider range of research...

The Power of Sunlight - Student's Guide

25 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

In this module, you will join a research team to ask questions about photosynthesis and cellular respiration, then carry out experiments to help answer these questions. You’ll create a team blog where you’ll post your ideas and share your data with a plant biologist, and share what...

The Power of Sunlight - Teacher's Guide

25 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Investigations in Photosynthesis & Respiration.

The Power of Sunlight - Mentor Tip Sheet

25 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

The purpose of this tip sheet is to help you as a scientist mentor anticipate and respond to students as they post online about their photosynthesis &/or respiration investigations.

Activity Set C: Field Study of Flowers and Pollinators

24 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Summary: In outdoor field settings, students investigate animal pollinators, most likely insects and hummingbirds. Student inquiry questions will be explored by collecting data on pollinator visits to flowers. Students count the number of pollinator visits to flowers during timed observation...

Activity Set B: Exploring Pollen in the Atmosphere

24 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Summary: Students explore wind-pollination through investigating pollen in the atmosphere. They construct simple pollen traps and set them outdoors. Using a staining technique to distinguish pollen from other material on microscope slides, students conduct pollen counts from the collected...

Activity Set A: Background for Inquiries Investigating Pollen in Plant Reproduction

24 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Summary: Students gain background knowledge for inquiry investigations through dissecting flowers and/or cones and observing pollen grains through compound microscopes. In addition, students conduct either a guided or open inquiry investigation by growing pollen tubes. Through these activities,...

PlantingScience College Consent Form

19 May 2016

This form needs to be completed for each college-age participant in a PlantingScience module. Signing this form grants PlantingScience the ability to use images and videos from student projects.

PlantingScience K-12 Consent Form

19 May 2016

This form needs to be completed for each student participating in the PlantingScience online community.****Parental consent MUST be obtained for students 13 years of age and under.**Parental consent is NOT necessary for students over 13 years of age, and the students will need to...

Letter for School Authority to Sign

19 May 2016

**For schools in the United States ONLY**Containing information on the PlantingScience online community, this letter is to be sent to main authority for your school or school district. In this letter we describe how secondary school teachers, students, and plant scientists work together in...

Photosynthesis and Respiration Resources

12 May 2016 | Contributor(s): plantingscience

Videos, Web Pages, Books, and Peer-Reviewed Articles to supplement The Power of Sunlight Teacher’s Guide

Teacher Handbook

09 May 2016

Use this handbook to learn about PlantingScience and how to use it most effectively. Further, a review of this FREE resource from the National Academy of Sciences - Decoding Science - is a fantastic review of what science IS and what it means to DO science.

Storyboard

09 May 2016

Storyboarding consolidates evidence so students can consider how their data fits into their models. By sharing their stories and allowing others to question their conclusions, students learn to reconcile evidence as scientists do. This is sometimes referred to as scientific thinking.

Using Microscopes

09 May 2016

Using MicroscopesOne of the ways that technology has boosted science is by helping researchers observe objects that are normally too small or too far away to see. You won’t be using telescopes or binoculars to study plants, but microscopes can help you explore the cellular world. You...

Imaging Technology

09 May 2016

Imaging TechnologyIt is easy to know what to write in your lab notebook when making quantitative measurements. For instance, you simply record the reading from a balance when measuring plant mass. Still, science also involves collecting qualitative data. What is the best way to describe data...

Field Research

09 May 2016

Field ResearchSome science is best carried out in nature. Studies where you need to identify all the different plant species in a habitat, count the number of pollinators that come and go from a certain kind of plant, or track changes in the color of autumn leaves might require outdoor...

Lab Research

09 May 2016

Lab ResearchStep out of the science hallway into a room with beakers on the benches, machines that go whiz-bang, and safety shower in the corner. You will immediately recognize that you are in a lab! A science lab is more than a place with ritualized protocols and specialized – often...

Investigating Safely

09 May 2016

Investigating SafelyLab Safety is Everyone’s Job!Before you begin any experiment, you and your team should consider safety issues. Always identify the specific materials, chemicals, equipment, and plants you will be using before you start. It is your responsibility to then use...

Plant Care

09 May 2016 | Teacher Resources

Plant Care You cannot conduct experiments with plants if you cannot first keep plants alive. Review this article to learn essential tips on how to grow plants under "normal" conditions. Once basic plant growth principles are understood, then treatments can be applied. Thinking Like a...