A Little Help From Their Friends
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Provided by: Illinois Department of Natural Resources|Published on: May 1, 2025
Lesson PlansScientist Reviewed
K12
Scientist Reviewed This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This primary lesson from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources introduces students to how seeds are dispersed by means of environmental factors, animals, and humans.
- The students will learn which intervention most likely causes certain types of seeds to reproduce.
Subjects: Science
Authors: Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Region: United States, Illinois
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- The lesson has the background information, vocabulary, and visuals needed for teachers to scaffold and meet the needs of diverse learners.
- This lesson serves as an introduction lesson in order for students to see how seeds are dispersed through animals and/or humans.
- The lesson has a built-in extension activity that allows teachers to continue the learning segment with a hands-on experience.
Prerequisites
- The teacher should print off enough student guides and corresponding activity for his/her entire class before beginning the lesson.
- Teachers may teach the vocabulary needed for the lesson ahead of time, including the terms fruit, nursery, nut, sapling, and seed. Vocabulary cards with pictures may be important for young students to understand the vocabulary and make the connections needed for this lesson.
- Teachers may want to schedule a field trip as an extension activity before beginning the lesson. Planning for a field trip before the lesson begins will encourage hands-on exploration of how trees are created and reproduce.
- Teachers may want to consider teaching this lesson either in the fall or spring so that students may have an opportunity to search for saplings and seeds to bring into the classroom to explore further.
- One of the extension activities references a tree identification resource. However, this resource is not included in the lesson plan. Teachers may need to search for an age-appropriate resource to utilize within the lesson.
Differentiation & Implementation
- Teachers can use this lesson on trees in the rainforests so that students may compare and contrast types of trees found at the local level versus those found in the rainforest.
- Students can bring in fruits with seeds in them. Using age-appropriate utensils, students can dissect the fruit in order to pull out the seed(s).
- Using a sequencing visual aid, students can draw the stages of tree growth from seed to full maturity with guidance from their teacher.
This activity guides students in understanding how tree seeds are dispersed. The text is clear, and a vocabulary list is provided. This resource focuses on the interconnectedness of trees, animals, and people and could serve as a great introduction to discussion of humans’ role as stewards of the climate. This resource is recommended for teaching.
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
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