Florida SC.3.L.14.2
The Standard
Investigate and describe how plants respond to stimuli (heat, light, gravity), such as the way plant stems grow toward light and their roots grow downward in response to gravity.
Florida Next Generation Sunshine State Standards for Science
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students set up simple plant investigations involving light, temperature, or position. They observe changes over several days and describe how stems, roots, or leaves respond.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students can identify the stimulus and describe the plant’s response using observations. They can explain that stems often bend toward light and roots grow with gravity.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think plants move quickly or choose where to grow. They may say roots grow downward only to find water, or that more heat always improves growth.
How to Assess It
- Show a picture of a tilted seedling with roots curving downward. Ask, “What stimulus caused this response, and what evidence supports your answer?”
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Place bean seedlings beside a lamp, rotate the pots, and photograph stem direction each day.
Write: “How would a seedling grow near a window, in a warm cabinet, or inside a slowly turned pot?”
Sort plant response cards by stimulus: light, heat, or gravity, then explain each match to a partner.
Examine plants near classroom windows and vents, then connect their growth patterns to choices made in gardens and greenhouses.
Free download
Printable SC.3.L.14.2 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to SC.3.L.14.2, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.
Download the worksheetKeep exploring
Related Standards
- SC.8.L.18.1
Describe and investigate the process of photosynthesis, such as the roles of light, carbon dioxide, water and chlorophyll; production of food; release of oxygen...
- SC.3.L.17.1
Describe how animals and plants respond to changing seasons.
- SC.K.L.14.3
Observe plants and animals, describe how they are alike and how they are different in the way they look and in the things they do.
- SC.1.L.14.2
Identify the major parts of plants, including stem, roots, leaves, and flowers.
Turn this exact standard into a lesson
Grade, subject, topic, and the complete standard are prefilled. Create one free, no account needed.
Also for this standard:Make a WorksheetMake a QuizMake a Sub Lesson