Resources & Presentation Order for Plant Families

More Botany planning and organization notes! I am mostly framing this block around Thomas Elpel's work. We will read portions of Shanleya's Quest and Shanleya's Quest 2: Botany Adventure at the Fallen Tree.

Part I: Shanleya's Quest

Introduction

"Story Time"
"The Rain of Time"
"Soup Bubbles"
"The Great Tree"
"Shanleya"

Mints

featured plants: basil, holy basil, sage, oregano, thyme, lemon thyme, lemon balm, spearmint, apple mint, pineapple mint, lime mint, orange mint, sweet pear mint, ginger mint, chocolate mint, strawberry mint, lavender, rosemary, lamb's ear, summer savory

Finding Mint Island (Mint Family)
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



patterns of the Mint Family illus.

enjoy candied mint and lemon balm leaves

SWI < lavender > and < launder >

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (lavender)

Umbellifers / Parsleys

featured plants: carrot, celery, dill, fennel, parsley, lovage

SWI < umbrage > and < umbrella >

The Parsley Guardian (Parsley Family)
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



taste fennel microgreens from LEAF

carrot, p.101
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek



one of the ways to identify monocots is that they have vascular bundles scattered throughout instead of in a ring just under the skin

"What Ingredients Will Celery Move to Its Leaves?" experiment on page 46 of The Curious Kid's Science Book by Asia Citro



it is really important to keep this experiment in the refrigerator or the sugar water will spoil and it won't be safe to taste the celery leaves

my students got into this experiment and we ended up with a really long list! Solo square base cups are perfect for this because you can write the date, the child's initials, and the ingredient on them easily



peppermint extract
vanilla extract
maple syrup
Hershey's chocolate syrup
honey
olive oil
Bragg's liquid aminos
freshly squeezed lemon juice
peppermint tea
red food coloring
blue food coloring
green food coloring

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (dill)

72 - Storing Food Reserves / Food Storage Structures (carrot)

Brassiceae / Mustards

featured plants: cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, horseradish, kale, radish, turnip, rutabaga, honesty, woad, alyssum

The Secret Combination to Mustard Island (Mustard Family)
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



patterns of the Mustard Family illus.

mustard flower, p.135
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek



The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
98 - Seeds and Seed Germination / Monocot and Dicot Seedlings (honesty, mustard)

Legumes / Peas

featured plants: green bean, sugar snap pea, snow pea, edamame, ice cream bean tree, redbud, tamarind, clover, mung bean, chickpea, red lentil, great Northern bean, black bean, canary bean, red bean

this family also includes licorice, jicama, popcorn plant, and carob!

wisteria & lupine are also examples of flowers that are in this family

The Pea Islands (Pea Family)
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



patterns of the Pea Family illus.

the ice cream bean tree is a leaf from the Tree of Life Bundle by Waseca Biomes

Nitrogen Cycle Montessori Style
blog posts - Somewhat in the Air

Montessori and the Nitrogen Cycle
blog post - Switzerite





a bean that has been germinated, p.111
pea flower and seed pod, p.145
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek



create dried bean mandalas

make Easy Hummus (Better Than Store-Bought)

the peanut is a fascinating legume because it develops below the ground! consider reading a book about George Washington Carver


A Weed Is a Flower: The Life of George Washington Carver
by Aliki


In the Garden with Dr. Carver
by Susan Grigsby

Susan Grigsby also wrote a book about Thomas Jefferson, called First Peas to the Table: How Thomas Jefferson Inspired a School Garden



you can also use this family to introduce the pea experiments from Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas by Cheryl Bardoe



Punnet Square with Legos
we did this with dragon eyes - red dominant, blue recessive

look at the Chihuahua and Yorkshire Terrier tiles from Dog Bingo, then look at Archie



Punnett Square worksheet (PDF)

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
98 - Seeds and Seed Germination / Monocot and Dicot Seedlings (bean seed)

95 - Dry Fruit Types / Dry Many-Seeded Fruit Types (legume)

89 - Floral Specialization / Fusion, Reduction, and Ornamentation (sweet pea)

19 & 20 - Plant Genetics (examples of 16 square Punnett squares)



for more on the importance of genetic diversity look at red bananas from the Co-op and read Bananas!


Bananas!
by Jacqueline Farmer

Bats and Disappearing Wild Bananas article
Bat Conservation International

Cucurbits / Gourds

featured plants: acorn squash, butternut squash, pumpkin, cucumber, summer squash, zucchini, watermelon

Unwinding the Cucumber Tendril Mystery

use for a conversation on cross-pollination


Pumpkins
by Jacqueline Farmer

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
96 - Fleshy Fruit Types (cucumber)

83 - Basic Flower Types (squash)

Custard Apples

featured plant: pawpaw

The Dystopic and Exceptional Pawpaw podcast
partisangardens.org
(background information for adults)

use for a more in-depth conversation about pollinators

honeybee and flower, p.56
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek



POLLEN: Darwin's 130-Year Prediction by Darcy Pattison



look at your plant's flower... what do you think is its pollinator?

Bromeliads / Pineapples

featured plant: pineapple

monocot

SWI < pineapple > and < pine cone >

pineapples are usually pollinated by hummingbirds or bats

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
96 - Fleshy Fruit Types (pineapple)

93 - Pollination / Butterflies, Moths, Bees and Birds



Hummingbirds documentary narrated by David Attenborough

Asparagus

featured plants: asparagus, hyacinth

monocot, perennial

The Island Map (Monocots vs. Dicots)
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



sample chalkboard drawing for spore plants, naked seeds, monocotyledons, and dicotyledons

"Double Take: Plants and Flowers" memory card game
published by The Orb Factory
star-of-Bethlehem (wonder-flower)

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
98 - Seeds and Seed Germination / Monocot and Dicot Seedlings (corn grain, bean seed)

88 - Monocots and Dicots / Characteristic Features

Amaryllidaceae

featured plants: onion, shallot, garlic, leek, daffodil, snowdrop

monocot, biennial

SWI < onion > and < one >, < garlic > and < leek >

"Double Take: Plants and Flowers" memory card game
published by The Orb Factory
amaryllis

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (onion)

72 - Storing Food Reserves / Food Storage Structures (onion, garlic)

13 - Asexual Reproduction / Multicellular Units (onion)

Grasses

featured plants: bamboo, sweet corn, popcorn, sugar cane, wheat, millet, barley, rye, basmati rice, jasmine rice, arborio rice, wild rice, oatmeal, teff (the world's smallest grain)

The Grass Islands
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



Grass Ropes
from Shanleya's Quest 2 by Thomas Elpel



grass, p.140, 142, 143
paper grass, p.141, 144
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek



I love the idea of looking at how animals camouflage themselves into grasses... perhaps some coloring time on a hot June afternoon with the Mindware Creature Camouflage series

Hidden Endangered Animals: American Bison
Hidden Predators: Lion
Hidden Feathers: House Sparrow Eggs, American Bittern
Hidden Fur: White-Tailed Deer Fawn, Meadow Mice, Giraffe, Anubis Baboon, African Elephant, Bengar Tiger



grains are really fun for sensory play
usually we dye rainbow rice so I think we will do oatmeal for a nice change of pace

How to Dye Oats for Sensory Play

pop popcorn!


Corn is Maize: The Gift of the Indians
by Aliki


The Popcorn Book
by Tomie dePaola


All in Just One Cookie
by Susan Goodman
wheat, sugar cane


Seeds of Change: Five Plants that Transformed Mankind
by Henry Hobhouse
sugar cane

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
98 - Seeds and Seed Germination / Monocot and Dicot Seedlings (corn grain)

94 - Dry Fruit Types / Dry, Single-Seeded Fruit Types (corn)

92 - Pollination / Wind, Beetles and Flies (corn)

91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (oats)

Roses

featured plants: apple, black cherry, hawthorn, plum, strawberry, nectarine, blackberry, raspberry

Islands of Fruits and Roses (Rose Family, Plum & Apple)
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



plum flower, p.112
apple tree, p.129
rose, p.137
paper rose, p.138
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek




Apples
by Jacqueline Farmer

"Double Take: Plants and Flowers" memory card game
published by The Orb Factory
rose

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
96 - Fleshy Fruit Types (strawberry, peach, apple, cherry, blackberry)

91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (strawberry)

83 - Basic Flower Types (rose, apple)

71 - Seasonal Changes / Seasonal Organography (apple)

13 - Asexual Reproduction / Multicellular Units (strawberry)

Urticaceae / Nettles

featured plant: stinging nettle

SWI < urticaria > and < ember >

nettle, p.100
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek

Asters

featured plants: dandelion, black-eyed Susan, calendula, chamomile, coreopsis, elecampane, Joe Pye weed, lettuce, marigold, prairie sage, purple coneflower, sunchoke, sunflower, tall boneset, wormwood

The Aster Archipelago (Aster or Sunflower Family)
Conclusion
from Shanleya's Quest by Thomas Elpel



patterns of the Aster or Sunflower Family illus.

Patterns in Plants Card Game - especially the Memory Match Game
published by Hops Press

"Double Take: Plants and Flowers" memory card game
published by The Orb Factory
sunflower, chrysanthemum, painted daisy, transvaal daisy, marigold, aster

sunflower, p.147
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek



The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (sunflower)

Part II: Shanleya's Quest 2

Introduction

"How Many Pistils Are Squished Together?"
"A Summer Day"
"Buttercups and Pistils"

Mallows

featured plants: marshmallow, okra, cotton, cacao, rose of Sharon, basswood

cut a piece of okra cross-wise and look at its geometric form

look at a cotton boll

look at basswood slide with Foldscopes

Mucilaginous Mallows
from Shanleya's Quest 2 by Thomas Elpel



mallow rosette, p.100
from Drawing from the Book of Nature by Dennis Klocek




Seeds of Change: Five Plants that Transformed Mankind
by Henry Hobhouse
cotton

"Double Take: Plants and Flowers" memory card game
published by The Orb Factory
hibiscus

Nightshades

featured plants: eggplant, potato, tomato, bell pepper, Goji berry

The "Deadly" Nightshades
from Shanleya's Quest 2 by Thomas Elpel




Seeds of Change: Five Plants that Transformed Mankind
by Henry Hobhouse
potato

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
96 - Fleshy Fruit Types (tomato)

72 - Storing Food Reserves / Food Storage Structures (potato)

Borages

featured plant: comfrey

Borage and Burbs
Clay Flowers
from Shanleya's Quest 2 by Thomas Elpel



patterns of the Borage Family illus.

The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young
91 - The Flowering Branch / Inflorescence Types (borage, comfrey)

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