Growing Plants

Goal: Keep track of plant growth

Preparation

Help children plant seeds or seedlings. Start this activity as soon as the plants are visible above ground.

1. Predict plant growth

Ask children to predict how tall the plants will be in a week and in a month. Record and save their predictions.

2. Measure plant height

Children hold up string next to the plant and cut it so that it’s the same height as the plant.

As needed, help children measure the string with a ruler.

3. Make a graph

Use the illustration as a guide.

4. Keep measuring and graphing

Each week, children measure the same plant and record to the right of last week’s measurement.

Ask children to look over their graphs and say what they notice.

Did your plant grow about the same amount each week? How can you tell?

How does the growth of your plant compare with your predictions?

 

Variations

Change the Conditions (Grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
Try this activity under different conditions—in a different part of the schoolyard, in a different season, or with some plants in the shade—and compare results. Do the plants always grow at the same rate? Why or why not?

Line Graphs (Grades 5, 6, 7)
Children measure plant growth each week and make a line graph. Ask questions to help them investigate rate of change:

• What does a very steep line say about plant growth that week? 
• What about a flat line? 
• Does your line ever go down (to the right) between two weeks?

Books and Other Resources

Book ideas to come!

Spotlight

Graphing change over time

Bar graphs can provide a visual, easy-to-understand record of change over time.

In this activity, children’s records of change are the strings cut to the plant height, which they organize into a bar graph. Each bar shows plant height at a given time, and the graph as a whole shows the growth over time.

For instance, this graph shows a plant that grew slowly between April 8 and April 22.

It grew more rapidly between April 22 and May 6.

As children track and discuss change over time, they build a foundation for understanding rates—plants grow in inches or centimeters per week; cars travel in miles per hour; and people walk in miles per hour.

Connections

Showing trends with graphs

Graphs can give a quick picture of ways that events, amounts, and measurements have changed with each passing month, year, or decade.

For instance, this graph shows that with each passing decade, children have typically spent more time watching TV.

In the financial world, economists, homebuyers, and consumers use graphs and charts to analyze trends in mortgage lending rates and interest rates: Have rates been going up or down? By how much? How might they change over the coming weeks?

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