KS1 Plants | KS1 Topic | Ages 5-7

What are plants?

A close up of bluebells in a green field with a cartoon girl looking through a magnifying glass in the foreground

Plants are living things that grow in soil and need water, sunlight and air to survive.

Plants grow all over the world, in our gardens and in the wild.

They can be big, like trees, or small and colourful, like flowers.

Both trees and flowers are types of plants.

Science

Plants come in all shapes and sizes.

Some only live for a short time, while others can live for hundreds of years, like some trees.

Here is some information and activities you could try.

Are plants important?

Plants are very important.

As well as looking pretty, they do lots of important jobs.

These include:

giving us oxygen so that we can breathe
providing food like fruits, vegetables and seeds

For example, wildflowers give pollinators, like bees and butterflies, food to survive in every season.

Honey bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers to make honey and food.

Learn more about different plants here

Labelled picture of a red apple tree and sunflower with roots and soil underneath therm. The tree is labelled with fruit, branches, leaves, trunk and roots. The yellow sunflower is labelled with flower, leaves, stem and roots.

Different parts of a plant

Plants have different parts, each with an important job.

The roots take in water from the soil.
The stem supports the plant and carries water.
Leaves make food using sunlight.
Flowers help plants to grow new seeds and seeds can grow into new plants.

Learn more about the different parts of plants

Trees

Trees are tall plants with trunks and branches.

There are different types of trees.

Here are two different types of trees you may have seen in the park or a local green space.

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Deciduous trees
Deciduous trees like this oak tree, go through changes through the seasons. In autumn, their leaves change colour and fall off. During winter, they have no leaves at all. Then in spring, new leaves begin to grow again.
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Evergreen trees
Evergreen trees like this spruce, are different from deciduous trees. They keep their leaves or needles all year round and throughout each season.

Activity - Yummy bugs

Why not have a go at making some tasty bugs using fruit and vegetables, with this fun activity sheet?

Discover more on KS1 Science

Have a look at the links below to learn more about different plants, seasons and nature.

Geography

Plants grow all around the world and can grow in very different places.

Some plants can grow in hot, dry places, like in the desert.

Some can grow in very cold places, like in the Arctic tundra.

Have a look at this information and try the activities to learn more.

Plants around the world

Plants are different around the world because of such things as:

the type of soil they grow in
how much sunlight they get
how dry or wet the weather is

Plants adapt to grow in the conditions where they live.

This slideshow tells you more about where different plants grow around the world.

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Tropical plants like bananas and coconuts grow in warm, wet countries.
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A cactus has adapted to grow in hot, dry deserts. They have long roots to collect water from a large area and a stem that can store water for a long period of time.
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In rural areas there is more space for plants to grow tall and wide. These wildflowers can grow well in large spaces, such as meadows and fields.
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Trees and plants like this cherry blossom, can grow in built up areas such as parks, towns and cities.
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Bluebells grow well in areas such as woodland, as they often have more room to spread out and grow naturally.

Cut grass and a plant with a pair of hands pointing to a tally chart showing different flowers with the numbers four, seven and ten. A cartoon girl is in the foreground.

Activity - Plant spotter

Have a look at the different types of plants that are growing in your local area, such as a garden, a park, or even your school. Make sure you take an adult with you.

Things to look out for:

How many types of plants can you spot?
How many different colours of plants can you count?
Where are the plants growing?

You could record your findings on a pictogram or draw your favourite plant.

Discover more on KS1 Geography

Take a look at these links to learn more and improve your geography skills

Art and Design

Paintbrushes in an orange pot with a yellow star on the front

Plants have been painted and drawn by artists for centuries.

Artists might paint flowers, trees or gardens to tell a story or to make their paintings more colourful and interesting.

Here is some more information and fun activities you could try.

Famous artists

There have been many well-known artists who have painted plants and nature.

Have a look at this slideshow to learn about three famous artists who have used plants and flowers in their art.

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Claude Monet
Claude Monet was a French artist. He is known for painting plants and nature in a bright and colourful way. This picture is part of his 'Water Lilies' collection.
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Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch painter. He created lots of colourful paintings of flowers. He often applied lots of paint to create texture and movement. This painting is called 'Irises'.
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Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol was an American artist. He painted in the Pop Art style and used bright colours and everyday objects to make modern art. One of his famous pieces is 'Flowers', which you can see at the top left of this picture.