Grade 3 Science TEKS 3.13B: Compare Life Cycles

Learning Target: I can illustrate and label the stages of the life cycle of a plant.

Focuses On:

• The 5 life stages of plants
• Plants life cycle as an actual cycle that repeats

Builds On:

K.13C:

identify and record the changes from seed, seedling, plant, flower, and fruit in a simple plant life cycle

Next Level:

This is the last time that students learn about life cycles of plants, though they will learn about plant reproduction in later grades.

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This lesson is designed to support students' understanding of the stages of a plant's life cycle.

The lesson teaches students the order and differences between the stages: seed, germination, seedling, young adult, and adult plant. It emphasizes that this is a continuous cycle, where the adult plant releases seeds to start the cycle again.

Students were briefly introduced to plant life cycles in kindergarten, and this lesson serves as their final, more detailed learning on the topic.

Learning Target: I can illustrate and compare the stages of life cycles in animals.

Focuses On:

• 3 stage life cycles
• 4 stage life cycles

Builds On:

2.13D:

investigate and describe some of the unique life cycles of animals where young animals do not resemble their parents, including butterflies and frogs

Next Level:

This is the last time students learn about life cycles of animals.

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This lesson is designed to support students' understanding that animals go through different types of life cycles.

The lesson begins with an introduction to the three-stage life cycle, where animals do not undergo complete metamorphosis. It then informs students about the four-stage life cycle, where animals do undergo complete metamorphosis. The lesson concludes by comparing and contrasting the two different types of life cycles.

This lesson builds on standard 2.13D, where students learned that not all animals change in the same way, by introducing the proper scientific terminology for these processes.