Making a root move through a maze

In this activity, pupils make the root of a seedling grow through a maze by rotating a petri dish to different angles. When a seed germinates, a root and a shoot appear. Their directional movements are a response to gravity or gravitropism. Primary roots show positive gravitropism as they grow toward gravity.

This activity extends Student Sheet 5 Investigating Seed Germination. The same technique of sowing seeds on filter paper in Petri dishes and then placing them in a half bottle should be followed.

Make the mazes by photocopying the attached sheet onto transparencies and then cutting out.

The pupils can also calculate how far the root has grown per day, by photocopying the mazes onto graph paper and then onto transparencies.