What Makes Plants Special?
Plants are amazing living things! Unlike you and me, plants can make
their own food using sunlight. How cool is that? ☀️
Plants also give us the oxygen we breathe. Without plants,
animals and people could not live on Earth! Let's learn about the
different parts of a plant and how they work. 🌍💚
Plants are the only living organisms that can make their own food.
Plants are the producers of the food chain. Plants are the base of all life on Earth.
Plants Make Their Own Food!
Plants are like little chefs — they cook their own food! 👨🍳
☀️ They use sunlight as energy.
💧 They drink water from the ground through their roots.
🌬️ They breathe in a gas from the air called carbon dioxide.
They mix these three things together inside their green leaves and
make food! This is called photosynthesis
(say it: fo-toe-SIN-thuh-sis). And guess what? While they make
food, they give us fresh oxygen to breathe! 🎁
Photosynthesis is the process by which green plants use sunlight, water,
and carbon dioxide to create their own food (glucose) and release oxygen as a byproduct.
Fun fact: Plants are the producers of the food chain. Plants are the base of all life on
Earth.
Plants are beautiful and they are very important for our planet. And we should take care of them.
Parts of a Plant
Every plant has special parts, and each one has an important job! 🛠️
🏠 Roots — grow underground and drink water from the soil.
They also hold the plant in place so it doesn't fall over!
🚿 Stem — like a straw! It carries water up from the roots
to the leaves and holds the plant up tall.
🍃 Leaves — the food factories! They catch sunlight and
make food for the plant.
🌸 Flowers — the pretty part! They help the plant make seeds
so new plants can grow.
Fun fact: Some roots, like carrots 🥕 and potatoes 🥔,
are foods that we eat!
Roots are the part of a plant that typically grows underground and anchors the plant in the soil.
The stem is the main stalk of a plant that supports the leaves, flowers, and fruits.
Leaves are the primary sites of photosynthesis in plants.
Flowers are the reproductive structures of flowering plants.
Flowers, Bees & Seeds
Flowers aren't just pretty — they have a very important job! 🐝
🌺 Flowers make a sweet juice called nectar that bees
and butterflies love to drink.
🐝 When bees visit flowers, they carry a yellow dust called pollen
from one flower to another.
🌱 This helps the plant make seeds! Seeds can grow into
brand new plants.
Fun fact: Without bees, we wouldn't have apples 🍎,
strawberries 🍓, or many other fruits! Bees are super helpers! 🦸♀️
Pollination is the transfer of pollen from the male part of a flower to the
female part of a flower, which is necessary for fertilization and the production of seeds.
So Many Kinds of Plants!
Plants come in all shapes and sizes! 🌍
🌳 Trees — big and tall, with thick trunks. Some are hundreds
of years old!
🌻 Flowers — sunflowers, roses, daisies, and so many more!
🌵 Cacti — live in hot deserts and store water inside them. They have
spines instead of leaves! 🏜️
🌊 Water plants — like water lilies, they float on ponds and lakes!
Fun fact: The tallest tree in the world is taller than a
35-storey building! It's called Hyperion and lives in
California, USA.
Trees are large, woody plants with a single main stem called a trunk, which supports branches and leaves.
Flowers are the reproductive structures of flowering plants, and they come in a wide variety of shapes,
sizes, and colors.
Cacti are succulent plants that are adapted to arid environments, and they have spines instead of leaves to
reduce water loss.
Water plants are plants that grow in water, and they have adaptations that allow them to survive in aquatic
environments.
Why We Need Plants
Plants do so many wonderful things for us and our planet! 🌎
🫁 They give us oxygen to breathe — fresh air every day!
🍎 They give us food — fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts!
🏡 They give us wood to build houses and make paper!
🐦 They give animals homes and food too!
Fun fact: We should take care of plants and trees —
they take care of us! 🌳❤️
Oxygen is a gas that is essential for the survival of most living organisms, including humans.
Food is any substance that provides nutritional support for an organism.
Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants.
Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms that are typically motile and heterotrophic.
Without plants, there would be no fresh air to breathe! Every time you take a breath, you're breathing oxygen that plants made for you. Plants are like the Earth's air cleaners! 🌿🫁 Can you think of how many plants you see every day?
How Do Plants Grow?
Click ← → to explore
What Did We Learn?
Plant Food
Plants make their own food using sunlight, water, and air!
Plant Parts
Roots drink water, stems carry it up, and leaves catch light!
Bees Help!
Bees carry pollen between flowers so seeds can grow!
Fruits & Seeds
Fruits protect seeds and help them travel to new places!
Fresh Air
Plants give us the oxygen we need to breathe every day!
Trees
Trees can live for thousands of years — count their rings!