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Science Lesson Kit · Teacher Resource

Pollination & Seed Dispersal — 5E Lesson Plan

Life Science · 42 minutes

Grade 2

5E lesson flow

  1. 01

    Engage

    5 min

    Teacher Does

    Show a bee visiting flowers and a hooked seed on fur. Ask students to name what moves in each scene without naming the processes yet.

    Students Do

    Point to pollen in one scene and the seed in the other, then compare the two movements.

    Ask

    • What is moving in the first picture?
    • What is moving in the second picture?
    • Are pollen and seeds the same thing?

    Look For

    Students distinguish pollen from a seed before vocabulary is introduced.

  2. 02

    Explore

    12 min

    Teacher Does

    Guide pairs through a three-trial test of a smooth model seed and a hooked model seed against the same felt strip.

    Students Do

    Predict, test each model seed three times, mark whether it stays attached, and compare results.

    Ask

    • Which seed do you predict will stay on the fur model?
    • What stayed the same in both tests?
    • What evidence did you record?

    Look For

    Students use repeated observations to notice that hooks help the seed model attach to fur.

  3. 03

    Explain

    8 min

    Teacher Does

    Name pollination and seed dispersal, connect each word to what moves, and show the simple order: pollen moves, seeds can form, seeds move away.

    Students Do

    Sort examples by what moves and complete short oral frames: 'Pollination moves ___. Seed dispersal moves ___.'.

    Ask

    • What moves during pollination?
    • What moves during seed dispersal?
    • Can wind move pollen? Can wind or water move some seeds?

    Look For

    Students state that pollen is not a seed and that pollination happens before seed dispersal.

  4. 04

    Elaborate

    11 min

    Teacher Does

    Give pairs a model challenge: copy one animal function that helps move pollen or a seed, test it, and revise only if movement does not work.

    Students Do

    Build either a fuzzy pollinator model that transfers large paper pollen between flowers or a hooked seed model that travels on felt, then demonstrate it.

    Ask

    • What real animal job does your model copy?
    • What part of your model causes the movement?
    • What happened when you tested it?

    Look For

    A simple working model linked to an animal function, not a decorative animal craft.

  5. 05

    Evaluate

    6 min

    Teacher Does

    Show one new pollination scene and one new seed-dispersal scene. Ask for a claim and one visible clue.

    Students Do

    Identify the process and explain with one short sentence or oral response.

    Ask

    • What is moving?
    • Which process is this?
    • What clue is your evidence?

    Look For

    Correct process plus a visual or test-based clue.

Student goal

I can tell what is moving during pollination and seed dispersal, and I can use evidence to explain how movement happens.

Learning objectives

  • Tell the difference between pollination and seed dispersal by identifying what is moving.
  • Use a picture or test result as evidence for how pollen or a seed can move.
  • Build and test a simple model that copies how an animal can help move pollen or a seed.

Materials

  • Two same-size paper seed cards per pair
  • Hook-and-loop dots or tabs for one seed card
  • One strip of felt or fleece to model animal fur
  • Three-box recording strip
  • Paper flowers and large paper pollen circles for the model challenge
  • Crayons or pencils

Before class

  • Make one smooth seed card and one hooked seed card for each pair.
  • Use large classroom-safe pieces; do not use loose powders or tiny glitter.
  • Set out felt strips and simple three-trial recording strips.
  • Prepare paper flower and pollen pieces for the model challenge.
  • Open Teach This Lesson and Read Aloud.

Prior knowledge

  • Flowers are parts of some plants.
  • Seeds can grow into new plants.
  • Students can compare visible shapes and surfaces.

Vocabulary

pollen
Tiny grains made in flowers that can be moved to another flower.
pollination
Moving pollen to a flower so the plant can make seeds.
pollinator
An animal that moves pollen between flowers.
seed
A plant part that can grow into a new plant.
seed dispersal
The movement of seeds away from the parent plant.

Differentiation

  • Let students point to Pollen or Seed cards before saying the process name.
  • Use the frame: 'This is ___ because ___ is moving.'
  • Let a partner record the three test marks while the student performs the model test.
  • For extension, ask why a winged seed and a hooked seed are suited to different kinds of movement.

Assessment

  • Check the three-trial seed-model record for a comparison based on observations.
  • Listen for a correct pollination-versus-dispersal distinction.
  • Check whether the model explanation connects a visible structure to movement.

Exit ticket

Point to a new picture, name the process, and tell what is moving.

Extension

Find or draw two different seed shapes and predict whether wind, water, or an animal could help each one move.