A Webquest designed for 6th and 7th grade students to expand their knowledge of botany.

Designed by:

Francesca Niekamp

jfniekamp@bright.net

Introduction / Task / Process / Evaluation / Conclusion / Resources / Work Pages

INTRODUCTION

It is the beginning of the school year. The principal comes to your teacher and asks that your class help to create a land lab in some space outside of the school building. Your teacher is very excited because she has a great interest in plants and flowers and wants to share in this learning experience with you. (The photographs included are from her backyard!)

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TASK

Your challenge is to create a layout of what you would like the land lab to look like. After our initial planning, we will create the land lab by planting flowers, plants, grasses, bushes, etc. We will take into consideration input from all students participating.

During this webquest, you will discover the science of botany, or the study of plants. Be sure to record your findings in your journal!

By the end of this mini study, you will have completed the following tasks:

Research various plants, flowers, grasses, groundcovers, trees and bushes to compare and contrast their habitat, growth habit, how they are classified. Find as much information to include on the fact sheet for your selected plants.

Record your findings in your journal.

Plan and draw a sketch of the layout for the land lab. View the land lab diagram for measurements of the land lab.

Present your layout for the land lab to the class. Create a visual to share. This could be a brochure, powerpoint presentation, poster, model, etc.

Organize and plant a land lab to include plants, flowers, grasses, groundcovers, trees and bushes.

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PROCESS

Step 1: Research

1. First of all, what is a land lab? What is botany? What should be included in a land lab? To answer these questions, visit at least three of these web sites to take virtual tours of various gardens.

2. Create a dictionary with at least 15 botanical terms. Explore various sites with information on plants, flowers, bushes, groundcover and trees. Your dictionary can be done with pencil and paper, on the computer, or in your own creative way. (Just check with your teacher!)

3. Now that you have a taste for what the project entails, you need to figure out how to get started on this challenging venture. To begin, travel to a web site that will teach you all about setting up a land lab/ garden. Choose 10-20 plants or flowers, 2 groundcovers, 3-5 types of bushes and 5 kinds of trees. Use the fact sheet to find out as much information as you can about each of these. Identification of common species will be a key here. You may choose some from this table, or explore and find some on your own.

Plants	Flowers	Ground Cover	Trees	Bushes
Hostas	Daylilies	Creeping Myrtle	Dogwood	Korean Lilac
Coral Bells	Holly Hocks	Silver Beacon	Redbud	Honeysuckle
Ferns	Roses	Ajuga	Rose of Sharon	Hydrangea
Clematis	Chrysanthemums	English Ivy	Hibiscus	Indian Hawthorne

4. Write an entry in your journal identifying your choices. Describe each one in detail and explain why you decided on these plants.

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PROCESS (cont.)

Your journey in this WebQuest will take four Steps. They are: Research, Designing a Land Lab, Assembling Designs for Construction, and Planting a Land Lab. Please read through all of the instructions very carefully and ask your teacher if you have any questions.

APPLICATION AND ANALYSIS

Step 2: Designing a Land Lab

1. Plan and draw a sketch of the layout for the land lab. Check out these websites for ideas on layouts!

2. View the land lab diagram for measurements of the land lab.

3. Using the information that you found and the measurements of the area for our land lab, construct a diagram of what you would like the land lab to be like.

4. Analyze the plants that you have chosen and experiment with placement of each in relation to the others and come up with your best proposal for the land lab.

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