The Plant Game

Farmers play an important role in our society- they grow the food we eat, the fiber we wear, and, in some cases, the fuel we use in our cars. This activity will not only give students the opportunity to think about how plants grow, but also some of what farmers go through while growing crops. In the game, teams of students grow green pea plants composed of leaves, roots, and flowers. The goal of the game is to produce the maximum number of flowers. In thegame the only way for students to produce flowers is if they have a good strategy to keep their roots in water and produce enough leaves to support adequate photosynthesis. Students “grow their plant” in a graduated cylinder in which the paper clip roots dangle in water. Measured amounts of water are added to and removed from the system by rainfall and transpiration, respectively, which are determined according to a roll of the dice. The game ends when another roll of the dice indicated a “frost”. Since the rate of growth of each student’s plant is limited by the “weather” and by the students’ choices in how they allocate their fixed carbon, a few repetitions of the game clearly demonstrate the function of leaves, roots, and flowers, and some environmental stresses on plants.

Subject area standards alignment: Science and Agriculture