Nutrients for Life Canada has prepared these e-lessons for learning at home. These lessons can be used by parents or teachers.
Lesson 1
The apple is used to model the Earth. Students learn that just 1/32 of the earth surface is devoted to farmland. They discuss what sacrifices may be needed to feed a larger population. The activity demonstrates how we as a society use land. The amount of land on Earth stays the same, so as the world's population gets larger, it becomes even more important that we make wise decisions about how it is used.
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Lesson 2
Plants remove water and nutrients from the soil through the plant's root system. Some nutrients move into root cells from the soil by diffusion and others by an energy- requiring process (active transport). This diffusion activity represents one-way movement of dissolved nutrients into the plant roots.
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Lesson 3
This activity demonstrates transport of water through the XYLEM VESSELS by using celery and food colouring.
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Lesson 4
It doesn’t matter if it’s corn in Ontario, peaches in British Columbia, potatoes in Prince Edward Island, or canola in Saskatchewan, every plant needs three main nutrients to survive. With this lesson students will learn the importance of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Healthy soil = healthy plants and healthy plants = healthy people.
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Lesson 5
Soil is made up of different particles that are categorized into three groups – sand, silt, and clay. Sand has the largest particles and clay has the smallest particles. Most soils are a combination of the three groups. The relative percentages of sand, silt, and clay are what give soil its texture.
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Lesson 6
Not all soil is the same. Even soil that looks similar can be very different. Soils contain different properties and different nutrients that plants use. This activity looks closely at differences you can see in the soil, including organic and inorganic material.
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