Transpiration: An Inquiry-Based Adaptation of a Traditional Cookbook Lab

 

Eleanor A. Pardini

Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2008, Volume 29

Abstract

Here I present an inquiry-based adaptation of a traditional lab to plant teach transpiration, the process that supplies leaf cells with water and dissolved minerals, that cools leaves, and is an important part of the global water cycle. Students begin lab by observing stomata on both surfaces of leaves and speculate about the patterns they find. They then work in teams to determine how to use potometers to measure the rate of transpiration. They work in groups and follow a lab handout to design and execute an experiment to test the effect of environmental variables on the rate of transpiration.

Keywords:  plant physiology, stomate, transpiration

University of Kentucky (2007)