Let’s Learn about Parts of a Flower
Learning the parts of a flower can be fun and easy with this fun (and free) flower printable activity. Keep reading for more flower fun!
What Exactly Is a Flower?
Flowers are the colorful part of plants that bloom. They are usually connected to a stem and have leaves.
Flowers help the plant to reproduce and make baby plants.
After a flower is pollinated, the flower turns into the fruit of the plant. These “fruits” can be actual fruits like an apple or vegetables like a zucchini. The word fruit is used for both plants to refer to the produce the plant makes.
This article may contain affiliate links to products that may help you when homeschooling preschool.
Why Are Flowers Important?
March 12 is Plant a Flower Day, which means they must be pretty important if they have their own day encouraging people to plant flowers.
Flowers serve many essential purposes in our society.
The many colors and scents can invoke emotions and may even help reduce stress. On top of that, there are many traditional medicinal uses of flowers.
Flowers have been used for hundreds of years, not only for medicine but also for food. Although we don’t often think of flowers as food, they are food for humans, animals, birds, and insects.
Attracting pollinators is an essential job of flowers. When bees, birds, and butterflies visit flowers, they get pollen on them. The pollen is carried to the next flower or plant they visit. This pollen is essential to allowing plants to reproduce (and make yummy fruit and vegetables).
Parts of a Flower
Stem
The stem is a long, straw-like part that supports the flower. It helps the plant to move water and nutrients up to the flower.
Sepals
The sepals, which are green and leaf-like, protect the flower bud (like a protective coat) before it turns into a big flower and help support it as it grows.
Receptacle
The thickest part of the stem is the receptacle. It is the part where the petals, sepals, pistil, and stamen connect. Its job is to serve as a place for all these parts to connect and to help support the flower.
Pistil
The pistil is the long middle part of a flower. It is made up of many little parts: the stigma, style, ovary, and ovule.
The job of the pistil is to receive pollen and then produce a seed-bearing fruit.
Petal
The petals are the (usually) colorful leaves around the pistil and stamen. Their beautiful color and patterns attract pollinators.
Stamen
The stamen comprises two parts: the anther and the filament. They are long and skinny filaments with an oval shape at the top.
The stamen’s job is to produce pollen! Pollinators move this pollen to the pistil so that the pistil can create fruit.
Parts of a Flower Activity
Items Needed
*Parts of a Flower Printable (in the Freebies Library— click here to access)
*scissors
*glue
*construction paper
*pencil/marker
Flower Activity: How To
1. After teaching about flowers, gather the supplies and printable. Have the labeled parts of a flower printable available for little ones to refer to when putting together their flower.
2. Cut out the pieces of the parts of the flower printable. Depending on your little one’s abilities (and frustration level), you may want to have the pieces already cut out.
No need to induce crying or frustration, especially this early in the activity. 😉
3. Grab the sheet of construction paper and place it in front of the preschooler.
4. Have your little one identify the petals on the labeled flower. Then, have them find the cutout petals.
5. Glue the petals in the middle of the construction paper.
6. Look back at the labeled flower and have your child identify the stamen. Then, have them find the cutout stamen, place it on top of the petals, and glue it in place.
7. Repeat looking at the labeled flower and then gluing the cutout pieces in the correct place on the cutout flower.
Do the stepal, then the stem/receptacle/pistil piece. After that, add on the ovary/ovule.
8. A grown-up should then label the parts of the flower.
Try writing the letters lightly in pencil and having the preschooler trace the written labels with a marker if they are up for the challenge.
9. Display the parts of a flower diagram somewhere your little one can see, and refer to it.
Preschool Flower Activity
Make learning the parts of a flower a hands-on activity by letting your little one put together their own paper flower using the printable above. Hands-on learning is a great way to help little ones remember what they are learning.
