Recommends use by teachers of new terminology regarding plant water relations. Includes definitions and Greek symbols for the following terms: water potential, water potential of cell, osmotic potential, matric potential, and pressure potential. (CS)

A comprehensive description of the salt marsh-estuarine ecosystem is provided. Topics discussed include: the general geologic history and formation of this ecosystem; physical and chemical parameters; variety; primary productivity; tidal zones; kind, sizes and abundance of vegetation; and the environmental factors influencing vegetation. (BT)

Presents a project that allows students to observe and show how quickly pollutants in the air and on the ground destroy plant life. Appropriate for grades four through six. (JRH)

Presents an experiment that provides students with an opportunity to investigate folk medicine and herbal cures and their accompanying claims. Involves isolating some active compounds from plant materials and demonstrating their antibacterial activity. (JRH)

Suggests ways to overcome the perception by some people that plants are less understood and interesting than invertebrates or vertebrates. Describes the specialization of reproductive systems and the development of plant-animal interactions to help raise the awareness level of the fossil record of plants. (RT)

Presents an activity in which students use a discovery approach to learn about seed texture, similarities and differences among seeds, and which seeds grow on which trees. (MKR)

Discusses the tendency for biology courses to neglect plant biology and instead focus on zoology. Examines the need for increased teacher training and public education in plant biology. (LZ)

Describes an alternative to studying plant community composition and dynamics. Suggests that teachers and students collect soil samples containing buried seeds (the seed bank), germinate the seeds in the laboratory, and analyze community dynamics through the composition of the seed bank. (ZWH)

Warns against the unknowing use of dangerous plants in the classroom. Promotes the safe use of plants for instruction and ornamentation. (SR)

Uses diagrams and text to describe four activities involving trees designed to aid students in better understanding responses to seasonal changes (ZWH)

Discusses the importance of maintaining links between school children and the outdoors. By creatively looking for outreach programs and simple animal activities, teachers can keep students' innate interest in nature alive. Studying nature can also teach students about interdependence. (SAH)

Describes some continuous models for growth of the seaweed Macrocystis pyrifera. Uses observed growth rates over several months to derive first-order differential equations as models for growth rates of individual fronds. The nature of the solutions is analyzed and comparison between these theoretical results and documented characteristics of…

Finds that many restoration projects have attempted to replace the native species, but project planners often have an imperfect understanding of the plant communities they are trying to re-create. Argues that when students join these projects, they may receive an inaccurate impression of local ecosystems. (Author/CCM)

Provides information on a 5-year study that tracks children's ideas and attitudes toward science. Follows children's ideas using the topic of photosynthesis. (YDS)

Living things respond to a stimulus, which is a change in the surroundings. Some common stimuli are noises, smells, and things the people see or feel, such as a change in temperature. Animals often respond to a stimulus by moving. Because plants can't move around in the same way animals do, plants have to respond in a different way. Plants can…