Primary 4 · Science · Systems: Plant Parts & Transport
Systems: Plant Parts & Transport questions for Primary 4 Science
10 questions to work through online, 2 of them written out the way the paper asks. Answer and you get the working straight away, then a score at the end. No sign-up, and you can retake it as often as you like.
- Direction of transport
- What a leaf needs
- Reasoning about damage
- Why roots have hairs
- Reading results
- Jobs of the stem
- Naming the process
- Naming a part
- Applying the ideas
Same picture as the question above.
| Plant | Leaves left on | Water taken up in 4 hours (ml) |
|---|---|---|
| A | 12 | 34 |
| B | 6 | 19 |
| C | 0 | 3 |
Answers and explanations for all 10 questions
Every answer with the reasoning behind it. Worth reading after you have tried the set — or on its own, if you are a parent marking it.
In the diagram above, which way does water travel through the plant?
Answer: from W up through X to Y
Water is taken in by the roots at W, travels up the stem X and reaches the leaves at Y, where it is used to make food.
Using the same diagram, where is the food that the plant uses made?
Answer: at Y
Y is a leaf. Leaves catch sunlight and use it to make the plant's food; the stem then carries that food to the rest of the plant.
Which two of these does a leaf need in order to make food?
Answer: A and B only
A leaf makes food using sunlight and the water the roots send up. Nothing is taken ready-made from the soil.
In the set-ups above, the leaves of A turned red but those of B did not. What does this show?
Answer: Water travels up to the leaves through the stem.
Cutting the stem broke the path, and the colour never reached the leaves. That shows the water goes up through the stem.
Why do roots have many tiny root hairs?
Answer: to give a larger surface for taking in water
Thousands of fine hairs touch far more soil than a smooth root would, so the plant can take in water much faster.
Based on the table above, which conclusion is correct?
Answer: The more leaves a plant has, the more water it takes up.
As the leaves go 12, 6, 0, the water taken up falls 34, 19, 3 ml. Water leaves the plant through the leaves, so more leaves means more drawn up.
Which two of these are jobs done by the stem?
Answer: A and B only
The stem does two things at once: it holds the leaves where the light is, and it carries water up and food down.
Water taken in by the roots leaves the plant as vapour through tiny openings in the leaves. What is this loss of water from a plant called?
Answer: transpiration
Water leaving a plant through its leaves is transpiration.
Look at the part labelled W in the diagram above. What is the name of this part?
Answer: roots
W is the roots, which anchor the plant and take in water.
A florist cuts a little off the bottom of each flower stem before putting the flowers in a vase. Why does this help them last longer?
Answer: It opens a fresh surface so water can be drawn up the stem again.
The cut end seals over and blocks the path water travels up. A fresh cut reopens it, so the flower can draw water up the stem again.