Chapter 1 of 8

All 8 chapters
  1. 1Plant parts and their jobs, readunderstood
  2. 2From seed to seedling, readunderstood
  3. 3A fair test with plants, readunderstood
  4. 4Light, water and plant health, readunderstood
  5. 5Leaves make food, readunderstood
  6. 6Flowers and pollination, readunderstood
  7. 7How seeds travel, readunderstood
  8. 8The life cycle of a plant, readunderstood

S2.1.1 Chapter 1

Plant parts and their jobs

What does each part of a plant do?

Your guess

Pick one before you read on. It is fine to be wrong.

Your guess

  • You picked A. Read on. At the end, the chapter comes back to your guess.

  • You picked B. Read on. At the end, the chapter comes back to your guess.

  • You picked C. Read on. At the end, the chapter comes back to your guess.

  • You picked D. Read on. At the end, the chapter comes back to your guess.

By the end you can

  • Explain the jobs of the root, stem, leaf and flower
  • Show water moving up a stem with coloured water or ink

Look at a plant by the road or in a garden. It has four main parts. Each part has a job.

The root grows under the ground. It holds the plant in the soil. It takes in water and minerals. Minerals are tiny bits in the soil that a plant needs.

A young plant in soil with a stem and leaves. Roots grow down into the soil. An arrow from the word water points at the roots. Labels: leaf, stem, root, water.leafstemrootwater
The root holds the plant in the soil. It takes water in.

The stem holds the plant up. It carries water from the roots to the leaves.

The leaf makes food for the plant. It uses light to do this.

The flower makes seeds. New plants can grow from seeds.

Draw it first

Draw a plant and its jobs

  1. A plant in soil, with a root, a stem, leaves and a flower. Four names are joined to the parts by lines: flower, leaf, stem and root. Under each name is its job: makes seeds, makes food, carries water, takes in water. An arrow points from the soil into the root, labelled water.

    1 Draw a plant in the soil. Give it a root, a stem, leaves and a flower.

  2. A plant in soil, with a root, a stem, leaves and a flower. Four names are joined to the parts by lines: flower, leaf, stem and root. Under each name is its job: makes seeds, makes food, carries water, takes in water. An arrow points from the soil into the root, labelled water.flowerleafstemroot

    2 Write flower, leaf, stem and root. Join each name to its part.

  3. A plant in soil, with a root, a stem, leaves and a flower. Four names are joined to the parts by lines: flower, leaf, stem and root. Under each name is its job: makes seeds, makes food, carries water, takes in water. An arrow points from the soil into the root, labelled water.flowerleafstemrootmakes seedsmakes foodcarries watertakes in waterwater

    3 Under each name write its job. Draw an arrow into the root. Write water.

Water goes in at the root. It goes up the stem. It reaches the leaves. The plant does not drink with its leaves.

See it three ways

As a picture

A table with two columns, labelled Part and Job. The root takes in water. The stem carries water up. The leaf makes food. The flower makes seeds. Labels: Part, Job, root, takes in water, stem, carries water up, leaf, makes food, flower, makes seeds.PartJobroottakes in waterstemcarries water upleafmakes foodflowermakes seeds

In words

The root holds the plant in the soil and takes in water. The stem holds the plant up and carries water. The leaf makes food. The flower makes seeds.

You cannot see water move inside a stem. But you can colour it. Then you can watch the colour climb.

Try it

Watch water climb a stem

You need: a white flower, or a pale leafy stem from a plant, a clear cup or glass, water, a little ink, scissors.

Be safe: A grown up cuts the stem. Never drink or taste the ink water. Do not taste any plant. Wash your hands after you touch plants and ink.

  1. Put a little water in the cup. Add ink until the water is dark.
  2. A grown up cuts a fresh slice off the bottom.
  3. Stand the stem in the cup. Keep the leaves and flower dry.
  4. Leave it for some hours. Look again the next day.
  5. Look at the veins in the leaves, or in the petals.

What you will see: The colour shows in the leaf veins or the petals. It climbed up the stem from the cut end at the bottom. The ink only gets in at the bottom. The leaves stayed dry above the cup.

If you cannot try it, this is what happens.
A cup of dark water holds the bottom of a stem. An arrow points up the stem, which is labelled stem. Two leaves on the stem are filled with a pattern, labelled coloured veins. The water in the cup is labelled coloured water.coloured veinsstemcoloured water

A wrong idea many people have

A plant drinks the rain through its leaves.

Why it feels right: Rain falls on the leaves. After rain, the plant looks fresh.

The test that breaks it: Cut two leafy stems from the same plant. Stand one in a cup of water. Stand the other in an empty cup. Wet its leaves with drops often. By the next day the second stem droops. The first stays firm.

What is true: Water goes in at the roots and up the stem. A plant gets its water from the soil.

Two stems stand in two cups. The left cup holds water and is labelled cup of water. Its stem stands up and is labelled stays firm. The right cup is empty and is labelled empty cup. Its stem bends over and is labelled droops.cup of waterstays firmempty cupdroops
Both stems are alike. Only the left one has its cut end in water.

Key words

root
the part under the ground. It holds the plant and takes in water.
stem
the part that holds the plant up and carries water.
leaf
the part that makes food for the plant, using light.
flower
the part that makes seeds.

Back to your guess

The answer is D: The stem holds the plant up and carries water.

The stem holds the plant up. It also carries water from the roots to the leaves.

Check yourself

Try each one before you look. A wrong answer tells you where to go next.

  1. Which part takes in water from the soil?

    Tap your answer.

    1. Yes, that is right. The root grows in the soil. It takes in water and minerals.

    2. Not this one. The leaf makes food for the plant. Water comes in at the root. Try another.

    3. Not this one. The flower makes seeds. Water comes in at the root. Try another.

    See the answer

    The root

    The root grows in the soil. It takes in water and minerals.

    • If you chose B: The leaf makes food for the plant. Water comes in at the root.
    • If you chose C: The flower makes seeds. Water comes in at the root.

  2. Which part of a plant makes seeds?

    Tap your answer.

    1. Not this one. The stem holds the plant up and carries water. It does not make seeds. Try another.

    2. Not this one. The root holds the plant and takes in water. Seeds come from the flower. Try another.

    3. Yes, that is right. The flower makes seeds. New plants grow from seeds.

    See the answer

    The flower

    The flower makes seeds. New plants grow from seeds.

    • If you chose A: The stem holds the plant up and carries water. It does not make seeds.
    • If you chose B: The root holds the plant and takes in water. Seeds come from the flower.

  3. Kofi stands a white flower in ink water. Next day the petals have colour. How did the colour get there?

    Tap your answer.

    1. Not this one. The petals were dry. The ink was in the cup, so it came up the stem. Try another.

    2. Yes, that is right. The stem carries water up. It carried the ink with it, into the veins of the petals.

    3. Not this one. The flower did not make it. The colour came from the ink in the cup. Try another.

    See the answer

    It went up the stem from the cut end.

    The stem carries water up. It carried the ink with it, into the veins of the petals.

    • If you chose A: The petals were dry. The ink was in the cup, so it came up the stem.
    • If you chose C: The flower did not make it. The colour came from the ink in the cup.

  4. Lucía says a plant drinks rain through its leaves. What is the best answer?

    Tap your answer.

    1. Yes, that is right. The roots take in water from the soil. The stem carries it up to the leaves.

    2. Not this one. A stem with wet leaves but no water below still droops. Water goes in at the root. Try another.

    3. Not this one. Water goes in at the root. The flower is at the top of the plant. Try another.

    See the answer

    Water goes in at the roots and up the stem.

    The roots take in water from the soil. The stem carries it up to the leaves.

    • If you chose B: A stem with wet leaves but no water below still droops. Water goes in at the root.
    • If you chose C: Water goes in at the root. The flower is at the top of the plant.

  5. Draw a plant. Label the root, stem, leaf and flower. Write one job for each.

    See the answer

    A plant with four labels. Root: takes in water. Stem: carries water. Leaf: makes food. Flower: makes seeds.

    Each part has its own job. The root and stem also hold the plant in place.

  6. Sipho says roots only hold a plant up. What is the best answer?

    Tap your answer.

    1. Not this one. Roots do hold the plant in the soil. They also take in water, so holding is only one job. Try another.

    2. Yes, that is right. A root has two jobs. It holds the plant in place and it takes in water.

    3. Not this one. Leaves make the food, using light. Roots take in water. Try another.

    See the answer

    Roots hold the plant in the soil and take in water.

    A root has two jobs. It holds the plant in place and it takes in water.

    • If you chose A: Roots do hold the plant in the soil. They also take in water, so holding is only one job.
    • If you chose C: Leaves make the food, using light. Roots take in water.

  7. Look at the picture. Which letter shows the part that carries water up to the leaves?

    A plant in soil with four parts marked by the letters A, B, C and D, from the top of the plant down. Labels: A, B, C, D.ABCD
    Tap your answer.

    1. Not this one. A is the flower. The flower makes seeds. Try another.

    2. Not this one. B is a leaf. The leaf makes food for the plant, using light. Try another.

    3. Yes, that is right. C is the stem. It carries water from the roots up to the leaves. It also holds the plant up.

    4. Not this one. D is the root. It takes water in. The stem carries it up. Try another.

    See the answer

    C

    C is the stem. It carries water from the roots up to the leaves. It also holds the plant up.

    • If you chose A: A is the flower. The flower makes seeds.
    • If you chose B: B is a leaf. The leaf makes food for the plant, using light.
    • If you chose D: D is the root. It takes water in. The stem carries it up.

Keep it

Copy this into your exercise book.

The root takes in water and holds the plant. The stem holds the plant up and carries water. The leaf makes food. The flower makes seeds.

Draw: A plant with four labels: root, stem, leaf, flower. Write its job by each.

Reading with a child? A short page for the adult: what this chapter teaches and three questions to ask.

No internet tomorrow? Save the whole book as one file (922 KB). It opens on any phone.