Unit Plan 18 (Grade 2 Science): Life Science — Quarter Synthesis
Second graders connect plant needs, animal helpers, and habitat diversity, explaining how sunlight, water, seed movement, and biodiversity support life.
Focus: Explain how plants meet their needs, how seeds/pollen are moved by animals, and how biodiversity patterns in habitats affect living things.
Grade Level: 2
Subject Area: Science (Life Science • Habitats & Interactions)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 30–45 minutes per session
I. Introduction
In this quarter-synthesis unit, students pull together everything they have learned about plant needs, seed dispersal, pollination, and diversity of life in habitats. They revisit simple investigations about sunlight and water, review how animals help plants by moving seeds and pollen, and use observations to compare high-diversity and low-diversity habitats.
Students then create Life Science Synthesis Posters or mini-books that show how plants, animals, and habitats fit together: plants need water, sunlight, and space; animals help plants by moving seeds and pollen; and diverse habitats support many kinds of living things. By the end of the week, they can explain how these pieces form a connected plant–animal–habitat system, addressing 2-LS2-1, 2-LS2-2, and 2-LS4-1.
Essential Questions
- What do plants need (like sunlight and water) to grow and stay healthy?
- How do animals help plants by moving seeds and pollinating flowers?
- How can we observe and compare the diversity of life in different habitats?
- How do plant needs, animal helpers, and biodiversity patterns all work together to help living things survive?
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:
- Recall and explain that plants need sunlight and water (and space/soil) to grow, using evidence from simple investigations.
- Describe how animals move seeds and pollinate flowers, and connect this to how plants make new plants.
- Make observations (from photos, schoolyard, or diagrams) of plants and animals in different habitats to compare diversity of life.
- Use charts, lists, or picture graphs to compare the number and kinds of living things in at least two habitats.
- Create a Life Science Synthesis Poster or mini-book that shows:
- What plants need to grow.
- How one animal helps with seed dispersal or pollination.
- How a high-diversity habitat supports many living things.
- Explain, in simple language, how plants, animals, and habitats are connected in helping living things survive.
Standards Alignment — 2nd Grade (NGSS-Aligned)
- 2-LS2-1 — Plan and conduct an investigation to determine if plants need sunlight and water to grow.
- 2-LS2-2 — Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.
- 2-LS4-1 — Make observations of plants and animals to compare the diversity of life in different habitats.
Success Criteria — Student Language
- I can tell what plants need (sunlight, water, space/soil) and show evidence from an investigation.
- I can describe or show how an animal helps a plant by moving seeds or pollen.
- I can observe plants and animals in two habitats and say which one has more diversity (more different kinds).
- I can make a poster or mini-book that shows plant needs, seed/pollination helpers, and a diverse habitat.
- I can explain how plants, animals, and habitats fit together to help living things survive.