Plant Lesson: Salt Effects on Farming
Lesson Plan
1 hour 45 minutesGradesK, 1, 2Biology, Visual and Performing Arts
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Written by Emily Townsend
About this lesson
In this lesson, students reflect on plant growth in salty soil through art and reading leveled texts. Students write their own text to explain their learning.
Inquire: Students use art to reflect on the effects of salt on some plants.
Investigate: Students read about the effects of salinity on crops around the world and consider the requirements for plant survival in a different context.
Inspire: Students combine knowledge from the unit and write a text about their learning.
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Everything you need to teach it
- Teacher SlideshowOpen
- Farming in Bangladesh: Read AloudOpen
- Teacher GuideOpen
- Student DocumentOpen
- Mural Cut-Out TemplateOpen
- Vocabulary CardsOpen
Teaching tips
Suggestions
- This lesson creates a collaborative learning environment for students to share information about their learning with their community.
- Students do an art experiment to learn how salt affects some plants.
- Students think about plant adaptations and changes to landscapes over time.
- You may split this lesson into several periods. Teach the Inquire and Investigate on Day 1 and the Inspire section on Day 2.
Prerequisites
- This is lesson 3 of 3 in our K-2nd grade Water and Plants Unit Plan.
- It is necessary to prepare materials for the Inquire section before class:
- Distribute 3 containers of water to each group.
- Add 2-3 drops of food coloring to each container to make red, yellow, and green paint. Alternatively, students can use watercolor paints.
- Distribute paintbrushes or manipulatives to paint with (ex. plant material, grasses, leaves, sponges, or Q-tips).
- Distribute cardstock for each student.
- Prepare a small container of salt for each table, but do not distribute it until it is time for students to sprinkle the salt on their paintings.
- In the Investigate section, students will read about farming in Bangladesh and Pakistan. The texts explain that both countries are in Asia, but you may want to show students where the countries are located on a globe or a world map to give them a more precise understanding of the countries’ locations.
Differentiation
- Students can read on their own using the leveled texts about Bangladesh or Pakistan, or the teacher can read aloud to the whole group using the projectable version.
- Students can dictate their ideas to an adult to write about their learning.
- Students do not need to complete Lessons 1-2 in order to use this lesson. If using Lesson 3 independent of the unit, students can write about their learning from this lesson only in their text using Template 4 in the Student Document.
- Differentiated versions of the student writing in the Inspire section are provided in the Student Document.
From the scientist review
Soil is an important component for plants' survival. This lesson allows students to evaluate the impact of saline soil on plant growth. It explores two country case studies on ways farmers adapt to soil salinity to grow crops, especially testing out crops that can tolerate saline conditions. This lesson has passed the science credibility process and is recommended for teaching.
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About the teacher writer
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Emily Townsend
K-8 ELL Teacher
Emily Townsend is an educator with 15 years of teaching experience as both a general education teacher and an English Language Learner (ELL) specialist. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Drake University and a Master of Arts in Teaching, Leadership, and Cultural Competency from the University of Iowa.
