Grade 5 Science & Technology Study Notes

Welcome to Strand 1: Living Things and their Environment

In Grade 4, you studied how plants and animals are living things. In Grade 5, we go further — we will sort plants into groups, study the inside of a flower, and learn why flowers matter to us and to nature.

What this strand covers

• Sub-strand 1.1 — Classification of Plants: sorting plants into flowering and non-flowering groups, studying the parts of a flower and their jobs, and understanding why flowers are important.
• Sub-strand 1.2 — Vertebrates: the five groups of animals with a backbone.
• Sub-strand 1.3 — The Human Breathing System: the parts of the breathing system, their jobs, and how to keep the system healthy.

Look around your school compound and home area — you will find many different plants growing side by side. Each one plays a role in the environment. This strand will help you understand them better.

Flowering and Non-Flowering Plants

What is classification of plants?

Classification means sorting living things into groups based on shared features. Plants are sorted into two main groups based on one question: does the plant produce flowers?

• Flowering plants — plants that produce flowers.
• Non-flowering plants — plants that never produce flowers.

Have you ever walked past a pine tree and a sunflower growing near each other? One has flowers; the other never will. This single difference is enough to place them in different groups.

Flowering and Non-Flowering Plants

Flowering plants

Flowering plants are plants that produce flowers. The flower is the part of the plant used for reproduction — it produces seeds that grow into new plants.

Examples: maize, pea plants, sunflower, tomato, strawberry, coffee, cabbage, beans, kale, sugarcane, sisal and potato.

Flowering and Non-Flowering Plants

Non-flowering plants

Non-flowering plants are plants that never produce flowers. They do not produce fruits either. Many have needle-like leaves and some produce cones instead of flowers.

Examples: pine, cedar, cypress and fir trees.

Flowering and Non-Flowering Plants

Characteristics of flowering plants

When you look at a flowering plant, these are the features that tell you it belongs to the flowering plant group:

• It produces flowers at some point in its life.
• The flowers develop into fruits.
• The fruits contain seeds inside.

Flowering plants can be tall trees, short herbs or climbing plants. What they all share is the flower.

Flowering and Non-Flowering Plants

Characteristics of non-flowering plants

Non-flowering plants have features that set them apart from flowering plants:

• They never produce flowers.
• They do not produce fruits.
• Many have needle-like leaves instead of broad flat ones.
• Some produce cones instead of flowers.

Plants come in many shapes and sizes. Look around your school compound and home area — you will find flowering and non-flowering plants growing side by side, each playing its own role in the environment.

Flowering and Non-Flowering Plants

Safety when handling plants

When you collect or observe plants, follow these safety rules. Some plants are poisonous and can harm you if touched or tasted.

• Do not touch or taste any unfamiliar plant.
• Wear gloves, goggles, gumboots and an apron when handling plants.
• Use cutting tools carefully to avoid injuries.
• Take only what your teacher tells you to collect — do not destroy plants unnecessarily.
• Wash your hands well after handling any plant.

The Parts of a Flower

What a flower looks like

A flower is the part of a flowering plant used for reproduction. Flowers come in many colours and sizes, but most flowers are built from the same nine parts.

The parts are divided into two groups:

• Outer parts — wrap around the flower and protect it.
• Inner parts — the reproductive structures that produce pollen and seeds.

The nine parts to know: petals, sepals, anther, filament, stigma, style, ovary, ovules and the flower stalk.

It is remarkable that such a small structure contains so many specialised parts, each doing a different job to help the plant reproduce.

Safety: Some flowers are poisonous. Wear gloves and goggles when collecting or examining flowers. Use cutting tools carefully and do not touch your face after handling any plant.

The Parts of a Flower

The petals and sepals

Petals and sepals are the outer parts of a flower — the first parts you see.

Petals

Petals are the large, brightly coloured parts arranged in a ring around the centre. All the petals together are called the corolla.

Sepals

Sepals are small, green, leaf-like parts found at the base of the flower, just below the petals. All the sepals together are called the calyx.

Quick check: petals are large and coloured; sepals are small and green.

The Parts of a Flower

The flower stalk

The flower stalk is the green stem at the base of the flower. It connects the flower to the rest of the plant and holds the flower in position so it is visible to insects and birds.

The Parts of a Flower

The stamen: anther and filament

The stamen is the male part of the flower. Each stamen has two parts: the anther and the filament.

Anther

The anther is the small capsule at the top of the stamen. It produces pollen grains — the male cells of the flower needed for fertilisation.

Filament

The filament is the thin stalk that supports the anther. It holds the anther up in a raised position so that insects, birds and wind can easily reach the pollen.

A flower usually has several stamens arranged in a ring around the central female part.

The Parts of a Flower

The pistil: stigma, style, ovary and ovules

The pistil is the female part of the flower, found at the very centre. It has four parts.

Stigma

The stigma is the sticky portion at the top of the pistil. Pollen grains land here when brought by insects, birds or wind.

Style

The style is the slender tube connecting the stigma to the ovary. Pollen travels through it after landing on the stigma.

Ovary

The ovary is the rounded chamber at the base of the pistil. After fertilisation, it develops into a fruit.

Ovules

Ovules are the small structures inside the ovary — the female cells (eggs) of the flower. After fertilisation, ovules develop into seeds.

The Parts of a Flower

Drawing and labelling a flower

A good flower diagram shows all nine parts with clear labels. Follow these steps:

1. Use a pencil — so you can erase mistakes.
2. Draw the flower stalk — a short thick line at the bottom.
3. Add the sepals — small leaf-shapes fanning out from the top of the stalk.
4. Draw the petals — large rounded shapes in a ring above the sepals.
5. Draw the pistil in the centre — round top (stigma), thin tube (style), swollen base (ovary). Add small dots inside the ovary for ovules.
6. Add the stamens — thin stalks (filaments) topped with small capsules (anthers), arranged around the pistil.
7. Draw label lines pointing to each part. Lines must not cross each other.

You can also use digital drawing applications to draw, colour and label a flower. Add colour — different colours for different parts make your diagram both accurate and creative. Share your work with classmates and use their feedback to improve it.