monodicot

MONOCOT AND DICOT PLANT PROJECT

THIS PAGE WILL DOCUMENT PLANT GROWTH FOR MONOCOTS AND DICOTS OVER A FOUR WEEK PERIOD OF TIME. I WILL PHOTOGRAPH THE CLASSES ON A DAILY BASIS TO ILLUSTRATE THE CHANGES THAT TAKE PLACE DURING THE PROJECT.

FRI/ 0

THE FIRST DAY STUDENTS WILL ASSEMBLE THEIR JOURNALS AND BEGIN THEIR SEED TRAY WHICH WILL BE THE SEED NURSERY TO GET THEIR SEEDS STARTED. THEY STARTED WITH 18 PINTO BEANS AND 9 CORN SEEDS WHICH THEY PLACED INTO THEIR SEED NURSERY ON FRIDAY.

MON/3

WITH 3 FULL DAYS OF GROWTH AHEAD OF THE SEEDS, STUDENTS WILL TRY AND DETERMINE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SEEDS AND COMPARE THEM TO WHEN THEY WERE DRY SEVERAL DAYS AGO. IT WILL ALSO BE NOTED THAT GERMINATION HAS TAKEN PLACE AND GROWTH OF SEEDS INTO PLANTS HAS GOTTEN STARTED. THIS DAY IS ALSO DEVOTED TO LEARNING THE PARTS OF A SEED, IDENTIFYING AND LABELING THOSE PARTS ON A DIAGRAM AND DRAWING.

TUE/4

TODAY STUDENTS ASSEMBLED THEIR BALANCES AND WEIGHTED THEIR SEEDS. THEY ARE MAKING COMPARISONS BETWEEN WET AND DRY SEEDS, DETERMINING HOW MUCH WATER MAY HAVE BEEN ABSORBED INTO EACH SEED, AND DESCRIBED ALL THOSE CHANGES IN SIZE, COLOR, AND TEXTURE. SEEDLINGS HAVE EXTENDED THEIR ROOTS AND OTHER PHYSICAL CHANGES ARE BEING NOTED.

WED/5

WE STILL ARE IDENTIFYING PARTS OF SEEDS ON BOTH MONOCOTS AND DICOTS. SEEDS ARE STARTING TO FORM INTO SEEDLINGS WITH PRIMARY AND SECONDARY ROOTS STARTING ALONG WITH THE BEGINNING OF THE STEM (HYPOCOTYL) PUSHING THE BEAN COTYLEDONS UP. ALSO TODAY STUDENTS ASSEMBLED THEIR POLE PLANTER WHICH THEY WILL START TO GROW SEEDLINGS TOMORROW. THEY HAVE A MEASURING TOOL ATTACHED TO RECORD ACCURATE DAILY GROWTH. SEEDS IN THE NURSERY ARE REALLY STARTING TO MAKE DAILY CHANGES WHICH STUDENTS RECORD IN DAILY DRAWINGS.

THU/6

YESTERDAY, STUDENTS MADE THEIR POLE PLANTERS. TODAY THEY TOOK THEIR MOST ADVANCED SEEDLING FOR THE CORN AND BEAN AND PLANTED THEM IN THEIR POLE PLANTER. THEY ALSO HAVE LEARNED THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF SEEDLINGS FOR BOTH THE MONOCOT AND DICOT PLANTS. AFTER TODAY THEY WILL START TO SEE BIG CHANGES IN THEIR PLANTS, WILL HAVE TO MEASURE GROWTH, AND DRAW AND DESCRIBE PHYSICAL CHANGES THEY OBSERVE IN THE PLANTS IN THEIR POLE PLANTER.

FRI/7

WHEW! WE HAVE JUST FINISHED ONE WHOLE WEEK OF SEED GERMINATION, CHANGES INTO SEEDLING STAGE, AND THE ACTUAL PLANTING OF A CORN AND BEAN SEEDLING. AT THE END OF THIS WEEK WE HAVE NOTED ALL THE PHYSICAL DIFFERANCES ON A DAILY BASIS BY DRAWINGS AND USING THE LEARNED VOCABULARY TO DESCRIBE HOW THE GROWTH PROCESS TAKES PLACE. WE ARE GETTING READY TO PLANT OUR SEEDLINGS ON MONDAY....WHEN THAT TAKES PLACE...WATCH OUT!

MON/10

STUDENTS ARE WORKING HARD TODAY. THEY ARE GOING INTO PHASE TWO OF THE PROJECT WHERE THEY ARE NOW PLANTING THEIR SEEDLINGS INTO THEIR PLANTING TRAYS USING VERMICULITE AS A ROOTING MEDIUM. AFTER TODAY, THESE PLANTS ARE GOING TO GATHER THE NECESSARY SUNLIGHT TO GO THROUGH PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND REALLY START TO GROW QUICKLY. STUDENTS ARE ALSO MEASURING AND RECORDING CHANGES IN THE PLANTS IN THEIR POLE PLANTERS FOR GRAPHING NEAR THE END OF THE PROJECT. THERE WILL BE BIG CHANGES DAILY FOR THIS WEEK!

TUE/11

POLE PLANTERS ARE GROWING QUICKLY. STUDENTS ARE ALREADY BEGINNING TO DETERMINE THAT THE DICOT PLANTS ARE DEVELOPING QUICKER THAN THE MONOCOTS. STUDENTS ARE MEASURING DAILY, RECORDING THEIR GROWTH THROUGH DRAWINGS, AND BEGINNING TO EXPERIMENT WITH THE AMOUNT OF LIGHT THE PLANTS ARE RECEIVING. THEY WILL OBSERVE AND RECORD GROWTH FOR THEIR POLE PLANTERS FOR THE NEXT 2 1/2 WEEKS, AND OBSERVE WHAT HAPPENS IN THEIR PLANT TRAY AS THE CORN AND BEANS CONTINUE TO GROW.

WED/12

BEAN AND CORN PLANTS THAT WERE TRANSPLANTED INTO THE TRAYS YESTERDAY ARE TAKING HOLD AND BEGINNING TO GROW NICELY. STUDENTS ARE CONTINUING TO MEASURE AND RECORD GROWTH IN THEIR POLE PLANTER, AND TODAY STARTED ANOTHER EXPERIMENT WITH NEW SEEDS. THEY WEIGHTED 4 CORN AND 4 BEAN SEEDS, AND THEN PLACED THEM INTO A SEALED JAR WITH WATER TO DETERMINE HOW MUCH WATER IS ABSORBED BY EACH SEED AFTER 24 HOURS. TOMORROW THEY WILL TAKE THAT INFORMATION AND CALCULATE HOW MUCH OF THE WEIGHT OF THE SEED IS WATER, AND HOW MUCH IS THE SEED. AFTER THE SEEDS SPROUT IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, STUDENTS WILL CONTINUE TO WEIGHT THEM AND DETERMINE HOW MUCH OF THE WEIGHT NOW IS NEW GROWTH FROM THE FOOD PRODUCED IN PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANT.

THU/13

STUDENTS WEIGHTED DIFFERENCES FROM YESTERDAY'S DRY SEEDS TO TODAY'S SEEDS THAT HAVE SOAKED FOR 24 HOURS TO SEE JUST HOW MUCH WATER WAS ABSORBED INTO THE SEEDS TO START THE GERMINATION PROCESS. THIS WILL CONTINUE AS THE SEEDS SPROUT AND MOVE INTO THE SEEDLING STAGE. THE STUDENTS WILL DETERMINE EACH DAY HOW MUCH WEIGHT AS INCREASED AND ATTRIBUTE IT NOW TO GROW OF THE PLANT AND EVENTUALLY GROWTH THROUGH PRODUCTION OF GLUCOSE FROM PHOTOSYNTHESIS. AS USUAL, THEY ARE STILL DRAWING AND RECORDING THEIR PLANTS IN THEIR POLE PLANTERS. TOMORROW, ANOTHER EXPERIMENT TO HELP DETERMINE PHOTOSYNTHESIS IN THE PLANT'S LEAVES WILL BEGIN. THIS EXPERIMENT WILL TAKE ABOUT TWO WEEKS TO COMPLETE. AS YOU CAN SEE, PLANTS IN THE TRAYS HAVE DEVELOPED LEAVES AND MOST ARE GROWING WELL.

FRI/14

PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND RESPIRATION IS THE TOPIC FOR TODAY! THE PHOTO ON THE LEFT DEALS WITH RESPIRATION TO LOCATE WHERE ON THE LEAF THE STOMATA MAY BE LOCATED. STUDENTS COVERED THE TOP OF ONE LEAF AND THE BOTTOM OF THE OTHER WITH GREASE TO SEAL OFF THE OPENINGS IN THE LEAF. AFTER A WHILE, THE LEAVES WILL BE CHECKED FOR CHANGES. THE PHOTO ON THE RIGHT IS TO DETERMINE WHAT HAPPENS TO A LEAF WHEN IT IS UNABLE TO PHOTOSYNTHSIZE. ONE LEAF ON ANOTHER PLANT WAS SELECTED AND COVERED WITH FOIL ON BOTH SIDES. CHANGES IN THAT LEAF WILL ALSO BE CHECKED IN ABOUT 10 DAYS. STUDENTS ARE STILL RECORDING GROWTH CHANGES IN THEIR POLE PLANTERS. WE ARE ACTUALLY RUNNING 4 EXPERIMENTS AT THE SAME TIME NOW. ALOT TO KEEP TRACK OF. AS OF TODAY, WE ARE HALF WAY DONE WITH THE LAB PROJECT!

MON/17

ON THIS DATE, WE HAVE TAKEN THE BEANS THAT WERE SOAKED LAST THURSDAY AND WEIGHTED THE BEANS TO DETERMINE HOW MUCH WAS IN GROWTH OVER THE LAST 3 DAYS. WE WILL CONTINUE TO WEIGHT THE BEAN SPROUTS DAILY FOR THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS AND SEE HOW MUCH WEIGHT HAS BEEN ADDED DUE TO GROWTH OF THE SEED INTO A SEEDLING. WE CONTINUE TO MEASURE AND RECORD GROWTH OF THE SEEDS IN THE POLE PLANTER ALONG WITH MONITORING THE EXPERIMENTS OF FINDING THE STOMATA ON THE LEAVES, AND THE STOPPING OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS IN THE LEAF.

TUES/18

PLANTS IN TRAYS ARE GROWING ALONG VERY WELL. DIFFERENT EXPERIMENTS ARE BEING OBSERVED AND RECORDED. TODAY STUDENTS REMOVED LEAVES TO OBSERVE THE VEINING OF A MONOCOT AND DICOT LEAF. THEY WILL BEGIN TO COMPARE THE VEINS OF THE LEAVES PRODUCED WITH THE NUMBER OF COTELYDONS OF THE SEED. THEY ALSO UPROOTED 2 PLANTS TO LOOK AT THE ROOT SYSTEM AND COMPARE AND CONTRAST THE TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF PLANTS.

WED/18

SHORT DAY IN LAB TODAY. GETTING READY FOR THE THANKSGIVING BREAK! PLANTS ARE GROWING VERY WELL, AND SEEDS THAT WERE PLANTED ABOUT A WEEK AGO ARE BEGINNING TO COME OUT OF THE VERMICULITE. STUDENTS ARE LOOKING AT SEED LEAVES AND TRYING TO COMPARE THE TYPE OF LEAF WITH THE TYPE OF ANGIOSPERM (FLOWERING PLANT) THAT ARE PRODUCED FROM MONOCOTS OR DICOTS. THEY ARE MEASURING AND RECORDING THEIR POLE PLANTERS ALONG WITH CHECKING ON THE WEIGHT OF THEIR SPROUTING SEEDS IN THE BABY FOOD JARS. ALL THE INFO IS BEING RECORDED IN THEIR DAILY JOURNAL. PLANTS WILL GROW ALOT BEFORE STUDENTS WILL SEE THEM AGAIN ON MONDAY.

MON/20

PLANTS HAVE GROWN ALOT OVER THE VACATION. STUDENTS ARE COMPARING THE COTYLEDONS FROM OLD PLANTS WHERE THE STORED NUTRIENTS ARE ALL USED UP TO THE NEW ONES WHICH HAVE JUST STARTED TO USE THEIR STORED UP FOOD FOR THE FIRST GROWTH SPURT OF THE PLANT. STUDENTS ALSO STARTED A NEW EXPERIMENT TODAY LABELED EXPERIMENT AND CONTROL WHICH WILL BE USED TO DETERMINE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE NEW COTYLEDONS ARE REMOVED BEFORE THE PLANT HAS A CHANCE TO GET STARTED TO PHOTOSYNTHESIZE. THEY WILL CHECK IT IN ABOUT THREE DAYS.

TUE/21

STUDENTS ARE MARKING THE STEMS OF TWO OF THIER PLANTS TODAY WITH BLUE FOOD COLORING. THE PURPOSE OF THIS EXPERIMENT WILL BE TO TRY AND DETERMINE OVER THE NEXT 4-5 DAYS WHERE ON THE PLANT STEM NEW GROWTH WILL TAKE PLACE. AS THE STEM GROWS, THE BLUE DOTS WILL STRETCH FURTHER APART AND SHOW WHERE THE MOST GROWTH HAS TAKEN PLACE. WE ARE NEARING THE END OF OUR PROJECT NOW. MOST OF THE EXPERIMENTS WE STARTED EARLIER IN THE PROJECT WILL BE OBSERVED AND RECORDED THIS WEEK. THERE STILL ARE A FEW MORE DAYS TO OBSERVE AND RECORD.

WED/24

PLANTS ARE NEARLY AS LARGE AS THEY ARE GOING TO GET IN THIS LAB PROJECT. STUDENTS ARE USING RUBBER BANDS TODAY TO TRY AND DETERMINE WHERE ON THE STEM OF A PLANT NEW GROWTH TAKES PLACE, AND WHERE STRETCHING OF THE STEM TAKES PLACE IN THE CELLS. THEY ARE CONTINUING TO MEASURE AND RECORD DATA ON THEIR DIFFERENT EXPERIMENTS WHICH WILL BE ENDING THIS WEEK.

THU/25

STUDENTS ARE BEGINNING TO FINISH THEIR PROJECT AND GRAPHING THE RESULTS OF THE WEIGHTS OF THEIR ORIGINAL SEEDS AND PLOTTING THEM ON GRAPH PAPER FROM DAYS 12 THROUGH 25 OF THE PROJECT. THEY HAVE FINISHED THEIR EXPERIMENT ON THE REMOVAL OF THE COTYLEDONS ON A PLANT TO SEE IF GROWTH WOULD BE SLOWED OR STOPPED COMPLETELY. TOMORROW THEY WILL PLOT THE GROWTH OF THE SEEDS AND PLANTS IN THE POLE PLANTER TO DETERMINE THE RATE OF GROWTH BETWEEN MONOCOT AND DICOT PLANTS. THERE ARE ONLY TWO DAYS LEFT!!!!!!!!!!!

FRI/26

NEXT TO LAST DAY OF PROJECT. TODAY STUDENTS ARE GRAPHING THEIR GROWTH OF THE SEEDS THAT WERE STARTED IN THE POLE PLANTERS 3 1/2 WEEKS AGO AND MADE COMPARISONS BETWEEEN THE MONOCOTS AND DICOTS IN THEIR GROWTH OVER THAT PERIOD. IN ADDITION, TODAY THE FOIL WAS TAKEN OFF OF THE EXPERIMENT WITH PHOTOSYNTHESIS TO SEE THE EFFECT LACK OF SUNLIGHT WOULD HAVE TO A LEAF. LASTLY, THE EXPERIMENT WITH THE GREASE ON THE TOP AND BOTTOM OF TWO DIFFERENT LEAVES WERE OBSERVED AND RECORDED TO SEE WHERE THE STOMATA (HOLES TO BREATH ) ARE LOCATED ON THE LEAF OF A PLANT. ONE MORE DAY....THEN CLEANUP.

MON/27

TODAY STUDENTS FINISHED THEIR PROJECT BY COMPLETING DIAGRAMS AND LABELING AREAS OF THE DIAGRAMS BY PLANT PARTS. THE PLANTS HAVE REACHED THE MAXIMUM GROWTH FOR THIS PROJECT. TOMORROW IS CLEAN-UP DAY IN THE LAB. WE WILL BE TAKING AN ESSAY EXAM OVER THE PROJECT WHERE STUDENTS MUST ANALYZE AND INTERPRET THE DATA DURING THEIR PROJECT.