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Teacher Notes (not visible to students)

This activity helps students describe how plant parts (leaves, stems, roots) help a cactus survive in dry places. Students will watch a short video the teacher adds, then explain in their own words how each part helps the cactus. Use the matching and sorting pages to check vocabulary and basic understanding before students record. The partner activity asks students to speak or record with a peer; have simple props (a picture of a green leafy plant and a picture of a cactus) available if possible. Look for clear, complete sentences in student recordings. A high-quality answer names the part (leaf, stem, root), says what it does (store water, protect, soak up water), and uses a simple example ("The stem stores water so the cactus does not dry out."). For the comparison challenge, a strong answer explains one real difference (for example: "A regular plant has big green leaves for making food; a cactus has spines instead of big leaves to save water.") and uses a sentence starter from the page. Teachers can mark the open-ended tasks as correct if the student names the part and gives a sensible function, or incorrect if the student gives unrelated or no explanation.