4 See the Invisible!!
Colin Blackwell; Sophie Gray; and Katie Sperka
See the Invisible!!
Age group: 3rd-5th grade
Keywords: Plants, photosynthesis, sunlight, leaf, water
Brief description: This experiment will allow you to SEE photosynthesis, a process that is normally invisible! It will take about 10 minutes of prep time and about 2 hours of patience!
Materials needed:
- Leaves
- Small glass bowl
- Small rocks
- Water
- Sunny area
Background for children: What you are seeing happen is called photosynthesis! Photosynthesis is how plants convert products from nature into energy – instead of eating food, plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to make their own food. Carbon dioxide is something that’s in the air, just like oxygen. While plants don’t breathe like you do, they are still alive! Just like you, all humans breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. But plants take in carbon dioxide, use it in photosynthesis, and release oxygen to get rid of what the plant doesn’t need. This is what allows you to see the bubbles on the leaf – those bubbles are the leaf releasing oxygen as it goes through photosynthesis!
Check out this cool video to learn more about photosynthesis!
After the video, try this worksheet to check your understanding of photosynthesis with a crossword puzzle and a drawing of the process that you can color on!
Photosynthesis Outreach Worksheet
Description of activity:
First, you will need to go outside and search your backyard for some leaves. Grab a few leaves from the ground, pluck some from a tree, and find a few small rocks! Once you have found your leaves, bring them inside and place each one in a glass bowl full of lukewarm water. Place a small rock on top of each leaf to make sure that it is fully submerged in the water.
Take a bowl with a leaf from the ground and another with a leaf from a tree and place them in a windowsill or in a location where they will get plenty of sunlight! Take two more bowls with one leaf from a tree and one from the ground and place those in a dark room. Now, WAIT! Give your leaves about 2 hours in the sun or the dark. After 2 hours have passed, observe your leaves and make some observations about what you see. How are the leaves different from each other?
Background for parents: When you return to the bowl after a few hours, you should notice that bubbles have formed on the surface of the leaf. This is due to photosynthesis! Even though the leaf is underwater, it is still taking advantage of the sunlight to complete photosynthesis. During process, plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen. The bubbles seen on the surface of the leaf are due to the oxygen expelled by the plant during photosynthesis.
(Crossword concept based on http://www.education.com/worksheet/article/life-science-crossword-photosynthesis/)
(Coloring page borrowed from http://www.pinterest.com/pin/611574824378598361/)