Purpose of activity:  To learn (in a very hands-on way) the terms botanist use to describe parts of plants, such as palmate, pinnate, serrated, lobed, tendril, stolon, tuber, tap root, etc.  Also, to learn to observe carefully the plants around you and not take them for granted!

Description of activity:  Students are given a list of fifty botanical things to find.  Next to each item is a number indication how many points it is worth, so that you can either keep track of how much effort each participant has put in (the harder-to-find things are worth more) or if you would like to have some kind of competition.  When I use this activity in my classes, I let the students "spend" their points at a table filled with goodies.

Target age group:  Any age 

Time allowance:  You could do it in one shot (allow several hours, if possible) but better yet you could do it over several days or even weeks (especially if you are part of a group that meets weekly).

Materials you will need:  Photocopies of the list, gallon-size zip-lock baggies for collecting specimens.  (If you are collecting over days or weeks, keep these bags in the frig when you aren't collecting, so they don't start to smell bad.)