Unit Plan 13 (Grade 2 Science): Pollination Models
Second graders create and test simple models showing how animals like bees and butterflies pollinate plants by moving pollen between flowers, helping plants make seeds and fruit.
Focus: Create simple models that show how animals help pollinate plants by moving pollen from one flower to another.
Grade Level: 2
Subject Area: Science (Life Science • Science & Engineering Practices)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 30–45 minutes per session
I. Introduction
In this unit, students investigate how flowers and animals work together so plants can make seeds. They learn that animals such as bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and bats visit flowers to drink nectar, and in the process they pick up and drop off pollen. This movement of pollen from one flower to another is called pollination, and it helps plants grow fruits and seeds.
Students then become pollination model-makers, designing and testing simple models that mimic how animals move pollen between flowers. By the end of the week, students can explain how their model shows pollination and how animals are helping plants, directly addressing 2-LS2-2.
Essential Questions
- What is pollination, and why do flowers need it?
- How do animals like bees and butterflies help move pollen from flower to flower?
- What is a model, and how can it show the function of a pollinating animal?
- Why are pollinators important for plants, food, and people?
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:
- Observe and describe the main parts of a flower (e.g., petals, center) and recognize pollen as a powder that can move.
- Identify at least two pollinators (e.g., bees, butterflies, hummingbirds) and describe how they help move pollen.
- Explain that a model is something we build or use to show how something works in real life.
- Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal pollinating plants, by moving “pollen” from one model flower to another (2-LS2-2).
- Test their model in a simple classroom pollination “scenario” and describe how well it shows pollen movement.
- Use drawings and simple writing to explain how their model is like a real pollinator and why pollination matters for plants.
Standards Alignment — 2nd Grade (NGSS-Aligned)
- 2-LS2-2 — Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.
- In this unit, students focus on pollination, with seed dispersal addressed in the previous unit.
Success Criteria — Student Language
- I can name at least one animal that helps pollinate plants (e.g., bee, butterfly).
- I can tell what pollination is in simple words (moving pollen from one flower to another).
- I can build a model that shows an animal picking up pollen from one flower and dropping it on another flower.
- I can test my model and explain how it is like a real pollinator.
- I can explain why pollinators are important for plants and for making foods like fruits and seeds.