Mississippi Science L.1.2
Standard Cluster
Students will demonstrate an understanding of how living things change in form as they go through the general stages of a life cycle Investigate, using observations and measurements (non-standard units), flowering plants (pumpkins, peas, marigolds, or sunflowers) as they change during the life cycle (i.e., germination, growth, reproduction, and seed dispersal). Use drawings, writing, or models to communicate findings. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information through labeled drawings, the life cycle (egg, larva, pupa, adult) of pollinating insects (e.g., bees, butterflies).
2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Reproduction and Heredity
Cluster contents
Standards in This Cluster
L.1.2 is a cluster heading. These are the individual standards under it.
- L.1.2.1
Investigate, using observations and measurements (non-standard units), flowering plants (pumpkins, peas, marigolds, or sunflowers) as they change during the lif...
- L.1.2.2
Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information through labeled drawings, the life cycle (egg, larva, pupa, adult) of pollinating insects (e.g., bees, butterflies...
Teacher's field guide
What This Cluster Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students watch a flowering plant grow, measure it with paper clips, and record changes in labeled drawings. They show how flowers make seeds that can spread and grow into new plants. They draw and label the stages of a butterfly's life.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can use dated drawings and measurements to show a seed becoming a sprout, a flowering plant, and a plant with new seeds. They can put egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and adult butterfly pictures in order and label them.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think seeds are not alive or that flowers appear before stems and leaves. They may call a chrysalis an egg or think a caterpillar and butterfly are different animals.
How to Assess It
- Give students a seedling, paper clips, and plant and butterfly life cycle picture cards. Ask them to record the seedling's height, then order and label both sets of cards.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Plant sunflower seeds in clear cups, measure sprouts with paper clips each week, and draw changes on a dated chart.
Show photos of a sunflower flower and seed head; ask, 'Where did the new seeds come from, and how might they travel?'
Give pairs pumpkin growth and butterfly stage cards; have them order and label the cards, then explain one change in each life cycle.
Cut open a grocery-store pumpkin, count its seeds, then discuss how animals might carry seeds away.
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Printable L.1.2 Worksheet
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Related Standards
- L.4.2
Students will demonstrate an understanding of life cycles, including familiar plants and animals (e.g., reptiles, amphibians, or birds).
- L.K.1A
Students will demonstrate an understanding of living and non-living things.
- L.K.2
Students will demonstrate an understanding of how living things change in form as they go through the general stages of a life cycle.
- L.2.2
Students will demonstrate an understanding of how living things change in form as they go through the general stages of a life cycle.
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