Colorado Agriscience Curriculum
Section:
Plant & Soil Science
Unit:
Plant Physiology and Growth
Lesson Number:
10
Lesson Title:
Fruit Structures and Functions
Colorado Agricultural Education Standards:
Agriculture Science 11/12.4: The student will demonstrate and understanding of
physiological processes in agriculturally important plants.
Enabler AGS 11/12.4.8: Identify plant structures and their functions
Colorado Science Standards:
SCI 3.3.1, SCI 3.3.5
Student Learning Objectives (Enablers)
As a result of this lesson, the student will …
1. Students will describe the purpose of fruits
2. Students will describe the kinds of fruits
3. Students will identify fruits of agriculturally important plants
Time: Instruction time for this lesson: 50 minutes.
Resources:


AgriScience Lesson Plan Library, Unit C, Problem Area 4, lesson 3
AgriScience Fundamentals and Applications, Third Edition, Cooper and Burton
Tools, Equipment, and Supplies
Scratch paper
Apples (one per two students)
Paring knives (one per two students)
Ziplock baggie
Notes worksheets, one per student (page 6)
P.P. slides 5-25, one per student, print out 6 per page for students to cut up for flashcards
Scissors
Assessment, one per student (page 7)
Key Terms.
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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Fruit
Fleshy Fruit
Pone
Drupe
Caryopsis
Hull Fruit
Pod Fruit
Interest Approach
This lesson will require food as motivation, as edible fruit is the topic today. You are going to
lay out a series of apples and knives, which the kids will use in pairs. If this method of selecting
pairs won’t work in your classroom, choose the pairs yourself.
Good morning (afternoon) scientists! Is anyone hungry? In front of me, I have some beautiful
apples that have your name written all over them. Unfortunately though, you have to do
something for me first. I need you to find a partner, and that partner is going to be the other
person in the class who lives furthest from you. Don’t move yet, but once you have found your
partner, grab a sheet of scrap paper and a pen, and sit together. The two of you are going to come
up with the longest list possible of fruits that are consumed by humans or animals. Remember,
fruits must have some sort of edible seed inside it, and the definition of a fruit is a fertilized
ovary of a plant that grows to produce and protect seed. When I say “fruit”, find you partner, a
piece of scratch paper, and a pen, and get started on your list. You will have one minute. “Fruit!”
Allow students one minute to create their list for one minute, and then create a master list on the
board. Answers should include such things as strawberries, tomatoes, apples, etc. Have
students count the correct number of fruits on their list, and award the winners an apple before
anyone else.
Great job with your lists! I am going to create a master list on the board as you read me what you
have written with your partner. The team with the longest correct number of fruits listed will
receive one of these apples. However, don’t eat it yet! We need to do some research first!
Summary of Content and Teaching Strategies
Objective 1. Describe the Purpose of Fruits
Students will now come pick up one apple and knife per group, which they will cut into quarters
and then remove the seeds for tomorrow. They can split what is remaining of the apple and then
eat it.
Contrary to popular belief, the fruit is actually the fleshy material surrounding the seed.
Speaking of the seed, where do we find the seed? That’s right, it’s in the center of the fruit, just
as our apple seeds are in the center of our apples. Therefore, in order to get the seeds out for
tomorrow’s lesson, we need to cut the fruit up to get at the apple seed. Therefore, I need you to
work with the same partner. One member of your group will come up and get a paring knife and
an apple. Please don’t cut my tables! You are going to cut your apples in quarters, and then slice
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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away the seed area.
Uh oh…what do we have left? We have an apple with no seed, and no way to reproduce!.
Everyone hold up the fruit you have left after we removed the seed. I guess go ahead and throw
the apple out…unless you and your partner want to eat it! Nothing like a healthy snack in ag.
class! However, before you eat it, you need to tell me the definition of a fruit again…repeat with
me. “Fruit is a fertilized ovary of a plant that grows to produce and protect seed”. Repeat this
phrase over and over verbally until everyone has it. Allow students to eat the apple afterwards.
Hand out U3, L10 Notes Worksheet to each student.
Good job! Now, it’s time to get down to business. Our first assignment is to actually write down
the definition of a fruit. I handed out your notes worksheet for today, which has a spot for all the
information you will need to record during this lesson.
Use the corresponding Powerpoint or overheads, slide #2 to help students fill out notes
worksheet.
I.
Fruit Basics
a. Definition: the fertilized ovary of a plant that grows to produce and protect
seeds.
b. Fruits vary with species, some being small like bean pods or cherries, and some
large like watermelon and pumpkin.
c. The purpose of the fleshy fruit is to attract animals and humans to the seed and
help spread it over wide areas.
d. Seeds are formed within a fruit.
e. Fruits must be sufficiently mature for seeds to be viable.
f. Good fruit formation is essential in many crops because it is the fruit that is often
the most valuable part of the plant.
Objective 2. Students will describe the kinds of fruit.
Is everyone with me so far? Would all of you be able to describe the function of fruit to me? If
so, we will move on to our second goal, which is to discover the different kinds of fruit.
Obviously, peanuts and watermelon don’t have the same kinds of fruit, be we are about to
discover why. As I go over the following facts, please record them in your notes.
Project slides 3 and 4
II.
Types of Fruits
a. Fleshy Fruits: Large, fibrous structures that surround the seed. Examples are
strawberries and tomatoes.
i. A Pone: A fleshy fruit with numerous seeds, such as apples and pears.
ii. A Drupe: A fleshy fruit with one large seed, such as avocadoes and
cherries.
b. Dry Fruits: Fruit lacking fibrous heavy structure, formed as a pod or hull.
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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i. Caryopsis: Kinds of dry fruit with thin walls, such as wheat or barley
ii. Pod Fruit: Definite line or seam in the fruit, such as beans, peanuts, peas,
and cotton
iii. Hull Fruit: Do not have definite line or seam in the fruit, such as corn
and pecans.
Objective 3 Students will identify fruits of agriculturally important plants.
Hand out copies of slides 5-24 from the presentation, and students will cut these up for
flashcards, which will be used again with the seed lesson. After labeling each picture on the
back, they will cut them out individually to make a set of 20. This may seem easy, but when we
add seeds during the next lesson, this will serve as a good foundation.
Now that we know the different types of fruits, and the reason that plants need them, we will
begin to connect production agriculture to theory in learning by sight 20 different fruits. We will
use these fruits again in the next lesson as we talk about seeds, but today, we will focus on the
fruit itself. As I hand out these pieces of paper, I need you to write the answers on the back of
each picture listing the name of each fruit.
Answers: Slide 5. Soybeans
6. Grapes
7. Snap beans
8. field corn
9. red wheat
10. Peaches
11. Grain sorghum
12. Rye
13. Oat
14. Watermelon
15. Summer Squash
16. Tomatoes
17. White wheat
18. Green pepper
19. Onions
20. Sugarbeets
21. Confection sunflowers
22. Cucumbers
23. Cherries
24. Avocado
Review/Summary
 Use the “Bob the Weather guy” moment to help students review the information they
learned today. One student should prepare a report and have the other listen. Roles
should be reversed after that.
o We’re almost done! However, I want to sum up the facts that we learned today.
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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Therefore, I need you to get back with your original partners, and give them a
“Bob the weather guy” E-Moment. It is your job to give your partner a quick
summary of the function of fruits, some odd facts about fruits, and then describe
the different classifications of fruits. Make sure you use your handy microphone!
When I say “switch”, switch your roles. Begin!
Application
Extended classroom activity:
 Have students discuss differences between crops, fruits, and vegetables
 Bring in addition fruits or crops for identification
 Discuss each crop on the slideshow and decide whether each is a hull fruit, caryopsis,
pod, pone, or drupe.
FFA activity:
 Have students prepare a lesson plan for an ag. in the classroom or PALS day. Be sure to
include samples that the younger students can try…food works wonders in the classroom!
SAE activity:
 For students with a vegetable, fruit, or greenhouse SAE, have them classify their crops
grown by the fruit type. This will be a good activity for a proficiency or STAR State
Degree Application to set themselves above others.
Evaluation.
See attached sheet (page 7)
Answers to evaluation
1. Fleshy fruit: large, fibrous structures that surround the seed.
2. Dry fruit: Fruit with thin layer of fruit that surrounds the seed.
3. Pod: dry fruit with definite line or seam in the fruit
4. Hull: dry fruit lacking definite line or seam in the fruit
5. Pone: fleshy fruit with numerous seeds
6. Drupe: Fleshy fruit with one large seed
7. Fruit: is a fertilized ovary of a plant that grows to produce and protect seed
8. What are the main functions of fruit? Attract animals and humans to the seed to help
spread it over a wide area and to protect the seeds.
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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U 3, L 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
Notes Worksheet
Name:
Date:
I.
Fruit Basics
c. Definition:
d.
e.
f.
g
h.
i.
III.
Types of Fruits
a. Fleshy Fruits:
i. Pone:
ii. A Drupe:
b. Dry Fruits: Formed as a pod or hull.
i. Caryopsis:
ii. Pod Fruit:
iii. Hull Fruit:
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruits
Assessment
Name:
Date:
Define the following terms:
1. Fleshy fruit
2. Dry fruit
3. Pod
4. Hull
5. Pone
6. Drupe
7. Fruit
8. What are the main functions of fruit?
Unit 3, Lesson 10, Fruit Structures and Functions
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