Week 03 · Monday: Life Cycles (Grow It 3-5)

Monday: Around and Around

Rocket lines up five pictures: seed, sprout, bean plant, flower and pod.

"Done! The story ends with a pod," he says.

Raven opens the pod picture. "What do you notice inside? More seeds!"

Nova hovers over the row. "What if the end is also a beginning?" she hints.

Rocket bends the row into a circle. "It goes around!"

A life cycle is the pattern of changes in a living thing's life.

A flowering plant starts as a seed.

The seed germinates and becomes a seedling.

The seedling grows into an adult plant.

The adult plant makes flowers.

Flowers make fruits with seeds inside. Then the cycle starts again.

BUILD THE BEAN LIFE CYCLE

11

22

33

44

55

Plants and animals have many different life cycles.

But every life cycle includes birth, growth, reproduction and death.

Reproduction means making new living things of the same kind.

LIFE CYCLE CHECK

What comes right after a seed germinates?

Why is a life cycle drawn as a circle?

What does reproduction mean?

On Grow It Day you started two cups: water and no water.

Count the sprouted beans in each cup today.

Try it

Copy this table onto paper.
Fill in the Monday row with your counts.
Keep the paper next to your cups all week.

Safety first

Never eat the beans in your test cups.
Wash your hands after you check the cups.

Name the stage that comes right after seedling.

WHY THIS EXERCISEA seedling grows into an adult plant, which can make flowers.

Draw the five stages of a bean life cycle in a circle with arrows.

Where is your bean window bean in its life cycle today?What stage do you think comes next for it?

Cycle champions! Tomorrow we move a bean seedling into a real pot of soil.