Explore the Structure of a Plant

A plant is a living thing. Like other living things, it is made up of different parts, each with a job to do to keep the plant alive and healthy.

Three of the most important parts of a plant are its roots, stem and leaves. All three need to be healthy if a plant is to grow well.

Roots

The roots of a plant take in water and food from the soil. That's why roots reach so far beneath the soil!

A plant's roots also make the plant stable in the ground, stopping the wind from blowing it over.

In the picture below, the arrow is pointing to the root.

Stem

The stem of a plant transports water to the different parts of the plant. Remember, plants need water, sunlight and food to grow and survive!

A plant stem also enables the plant to stand upright and take in sunlight.

Leaves

Plants use their leaves to make food ... from sunlight!

In this activity, you're going to be looking at the different jobs carried out by the roots, stem and leaves - that is, what they do for the plant. 

Imagine you didn't have any legs - what would happen? 

That's just one of the things your legs do for you!