Plant Scientists
Put on your scientific hats! It's time to investigate the amazing world of plants.
Stage 2
Science and Technology
2 hours
Visitor Centre, Blue Mountains Botanic Garden
Minimum charges apply. Discounts apply for full day programs!
Come on a journey through the Garden to discover the amazing world of plants.
Get hands-on with different types of seeds to determine their dispersal mechanisms and plant seeds to take back to school to conduct a life cycle investigation.
Students will
- Explore plant life cycles on a guided walk through the Garden and discover how scientists classify plants.
- Investigate seed dispersal in a hands-on experiment comparing different types of seeds and how they disperse.
- Make predictions and conduct a scientific investigation into whether specific Australian plants need fire and smoke to complete their lifecycles, including planting seeds to take back to school to complete the investigation.
Key content
- Identifying patterns in plants and grouping them according to their external features.
- Comparing the similarities and differences between the life cycles of different plants.
- Exploring pollination and seed dispersal as examples of interdependence between living things.
- Planning and conducting a scientific investigation with guidance, e.g. planting and measuring the life cycle of a marigold plant.
Links to New South Wales curriculum
Focus Syllabus Outcomes
Science - Living World
- Compares features and characteristics of living and non-living things (ST2-4LW-S)
Supported Syllabus Outcomes
Science - Working Scientifically
- Questions, plans and conducts scientific investigations, collects and summarises data and communicates using scientific representations (ST2-1WS-S)
Make predictions and conduct a scientific investigation into whether specific Australian plants need fire and smoke to complete their lifecycles.
Related excursions
Experience the Garden and its fascinating nightlife on this adventure by torchlight.
Learn how First Nations People’s concept of time and seasons is circular and explain how things happen in the world around them.
Students will investigate a wide variety of local native plants that are integral in the life of First Nations peoples.