September 15

Is it Living?

First grade scientists began the year with a living and nonliving things unit. We have learned that plants and animals are living because they reproduce, react to changes around them, move on their own, grow and change, and need food, water, and air.

Are there other living things? Is yeast living? Does it need food and water? Can it reproduce (make more of its own kind)? YES! Yeast is a fungus and when it is in the package, it is in a dormant state, but if we add food and water, it will begin to reproduce. Yeast reproduce by budding. Click here to watch an animated video.

Fleischmann's ActiveDry Yeast Original

When we added warm water and sugar, the yeast in the bottle immediately began budding. Why did the balloon expand? Yeast release carbon dioxide as a waste product, just like us! Use what you’ve learned to explain why bread has holes in it. Click here to watch the experiment. In this video, a variable was changed. We changed some variables too. Some of my scientists used larger bottles and we added varying amounts of sugar, but we all poured in one cup of warm water and one tablespoon of yeast into our bottles.


Resurrection plants are found in the desert and have adapted to a habitat with little water. The plants drift into a dormant state and survive for years in this dry state. They looked dead when I pulled them out of the bag, but look what happened after we poured water on them!

The plant began to uncurl its dried branches almost immediately, but it will return to its dormant state if it dries out again. 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Water made the resurrection plant grow and the yeast reproduce. Can we make these animals grow if we place them in water? Are they alive?

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Posted September 15, 2020 by pbright2 in category Science

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