Richmond

Natural Science

PRIMARY
Natural Science 4 is a collective work, conceived, designed
and created by the Primary Education department at Santillana,
under the supervision of Teresa Grence Ruiz.

WRITER
María Antonia Fernández

MANAGING EDITOR
Sheila Tourle

EDITORS
Beatriz García Hipólito
Mª Antonia Oliva

PROOFREADING
Jane Drummond
James Price

ILLUSTRATIONS
Alademosca il·lustració
Digitalartis
José Luis Navarro
Marcelo Pérez
José Santos

Do not write in this book.

Do all the activities in your notebook.
 CONTENTS

Unit Natural Science syllabus Topics

People and health Nutrition

1 Life processes Systems involved in nutrition
6

People and health Sight

2 Our senses Hearing
16

People and health Health

3 People and health Prevention
26

TERM REVISION

Classifying Living things Groups of living things

4 living things Animals
38

Living things The parts of a plant

5 Plants Photosynthesis
48

Wild plants Living things Plant sensitivity

6 and crops The life cycle of plants
60

TERM REVISION

Forces and Matter and energy The effects of forces

7 energy Gravity
72

Matter and energy Heat

8 Heat and light Conductors and insulators
82

Technology, objects and machines The pulley

9 Machines The inclined plane
92

TERM REVISION

Cooperative project: Olive oil

2 two
 Topics Know how to

Sensitivity The locomotor system Identify healthy diets

The nervous system Reproduction

Touch Taste Interpret and use codes

Smell Looking after your senses

Health care A healthy diet Mediate in a conflict

Healthy habits Accident prevention

Plants Fungi Classify samples from living things

Algae Bacteria

Plant respiration Asexual reproduction Draw a flower using a magnifying glass

Sexual reproduction Plant classification

Vegetation The process of farming Choose and look after a plant

Crop farming Types of crops

Non-renewable energy sources Transformation of energy Identify the effects of forces

Renewable energy sources Uses of energy

Properties of light Composition of light Identify the primary colours of light

Refraction Reflection

The lever Operating parts Build a catapult

Complex machines Gears

three 3
 6 Wild plants and crops
6.1
Growing tomatoes all year long
Tomatoes are delicious and nutritious. However,
tomatoes go off quickly, so we need to eat them fast.
Years ago, we did not have tomatoes in winter and
spring. This is because tomato plants only grow and
produce fruit under hot conditions.
Today, tomatoes are cultivated in greenhouses.
A greenhouse is a building made of glass or plastic
that allows light through but keeps the heat in.
This way, tomatoes can grow all year long. They just
need water and fertile soil.
Temperature and humidity can be easily controlled in
greenhouses. For this reason, scientists use them to
conduct experiments. These experiments test the best
conditions for growing different plants.

Read and understand KNOW HOW TO

Describe how different

Why do we need to eat tomatoes fast? plants live.
Years ago, tomatoes were only cultivated
Identify different types
in warm seasons. Why?
of vegetation.
What are greenhouses made of? Why?
Describe crop farming.
Why do scientists conduct experiments
in greenhouses? FINAL TASK
Can you see different-coloured tomatoes
Choose and look after
in the photo? Why?
a plant.
SPEAKING. In pairs, talk about the types
of plants that are cultivated in greenhouses.

60 sixty
WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER?

The characteristics of plants

Plants make their own food. This
process is called photosynthesis.
Most plants have sexual
reproduction. Flowers are the
reproductive organs of a plant.
Other plants have asexual
reproduction.

1 What do plants need for

photosynthesis?

2 Name the parts of a flower.

sixty-one 61
 How plants live

6.2
What do plants need to grow?
Plants only grow in places where they can get what they
need to survive. The place where a plant lives is called
its habitat.
Unlike animals, plants make their own food. This process is
called photosynthesis. Plants need sunlight, water, mineral
salts and carbon dioxide to carry out photosynthesis.
But not all plants need the same amount of these elements.
For example, plants that live in deserts need less water
than plants that live in rainforests. 1 1 Cactuses can live with very
little water.
Plant sensitivity
Like animals, plants respond to changes in the environment.
However, plants respond differently to animals because
they do not have sense organs. Most of their responses are
movements related to growth.
The roots grow downwards, in search of humidity.
The stem and the leaves grow towards light. If the plant
receives sunlight from one side, the stem and the leaves
grow in that direction.
Some plants are capable of rapid movement. For
example, the mimosa plant closes its leaves when it is 2 Mimosa plant.
touched. 2

LEARN MORE

Plants change
Plants adapt to changes
throughout the four seasons.
For example, flowers grow in
the spring and leaves fall in the
autumn.
Some plants look different at
different times of the day. For
example, the hibiscus plant
opens its flowers during the
day and closes them at night.

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 6

6.3
The life cycle of plants
The life cycle of a plant includes the different stages of its
life. Life cycles are not the same for all plants. There are
two main groups of plants: annual and perennial.
Annual plants. These plants complete their life cycle in
one year. They are born, grow and reproduce in the
spring and they die in the summer. Annual plants
disappear, but their seeds remain in the soil, and new
plants grow again each spring. 3
3 Mountain grassland with
Poppies, sunflowers and cabbages are annual plants. annual plants.
Perennial plants. These plants have got a long life cycle.
Some trees, such as olive trees and yews, live for
thousands of years. Their trunks and roots grow
throughout their life cycle.
There are two types of perennial plants:
– Perennial grasses. The visible part of these plants
disappears every year, but some organs remain
underground. These organs grow new stems, flowers
and seeds in the spring. 4
– Trees and bushes. These plants grow throughout their
life cycle. They grow flowers and seeds in the spring.
Their leaves can be deciduous or evergreen. 4 The iris is a perennial plant.

Plants obtain what they need to survive in their

habitat. Depending on their life cycle, plants can be
annual or perennial.

ACTIVITIES

1 SPEAKING. Do all plants have the same needs to survive?

Discuss with your partner.

2 ICT. Search the Internet for information about the oldest tree in the world.
Write down the most interesting facts about it.

3 WRITING. Choose an annual or a perennial plant and write its biography.

Include a drawing.

sixty-three 63
 Vegetation
Plants are affected by the climate, the relief, the humidity
6.4
and the soil in the place where they grow. Some plants
live in cold places while others live in warm areas. Some
plants need a lot of water while others live in very
WORK WITH THE PICTURE
dry areas.
Vegetation is all the plants in an area, region or country. Look at the photograph of
the forest. Is there more
Forests, shrubland, grassland and deserts are areas
than one type of tree?
with different types of vegetation.

Forest
A forest is an area where many trees
grow close together. Some forests have
only one type of tree, for example, pine
forests, holm oak forests and beech
forests. Other forests have many
different types of trees, for example,
rainforests.
Forests need good conditions, such as
high humidity and fertile soil.

The Amazon rainforest is the

largest forest in the world.

Shrubland
A shrub is a bush. Shrubland is
an area dominated by bushes.
Bushes grow in places with poor soil
and low humidity.
Sometimes, after a very long period
of time, shrubland can grow into
a forest.

Various types of bushes

make up this shrubland.

64 sixty-four
 6

6.5
Grassland
Grassland is an area dominated by grasses.
Trees and bushes are scarce. Grasslands are
found in places with long periods of drought
where forests cannot grow.
Grasses die every year, but new grasses
grow from the seeds the following year.
In Africa, grasslands are called savannahs.

The African Savannah

is home to the zebra.

Desert
A desert is an area with arid soil and very
little water. There are very few plants.
Cactuses grow in deserts because they
need very little water. They store water
in their stems.
Temperatures can be very high during
the day and very low at night.

The Namib Desert, Africa.

Forests, shrubland, grassland and deserts are areas with

different types of vegetation.

ACTIVITIES

1 Match each characteristic to one of the four areas.

drought high humidity arid soil bushes
2 SPEAKING. What type of vegetation do you like best?
Why?

3 ICT. Search the Internet for information about the African Savannah or the
Amazon rainforest. Describe the vegetation there.

6.6

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 Crop farming

6.7
What is crop farming? WORK WITH THE PICTURE

Crop farming is the activity of cultivating

Which method do you think uses the most
plants to obtain different products. These water? And the least?
products are called crops.
Most crops are grown for food, for example,
A
cereals, fruit and vegetables.
Other crops are used as raw materials to
make other products, such as fabric,
cosmetics and medicines.
Crops are also used to feed animals, for
example, farmers grow hay for cows and
sheep.

The process of farming

The most important stages in the process of
farming are: B

Ploughing. In this stage, farmers turn the

soil to make it ready for planting.
Sowing. Farmers carefully place seeds in
the soil.
Fertilizing. Fertilizers contain mineral salts
that help plants to grow.
Irrigation. When rainfall is not enough,
farmers water their crops. There are
different irrigation methods: sprinkler,
drip and flood irrigation. 1 C
Fumigation. Farmers spray plants with
pesticides to stop insects harming the
crops.
Pruning. Some branches are cut from
trees and bushes. This helps the rest of
the plant to grow.
Harvesting. This is the final stage, when
farmers collect mature crops from fields.

1 Different irrigation methods. A. Sprinkler

irrigation. B. Drip irrigation. C. Flood irrigation.

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 6

6.8
Types of crops
There are different types of crops. We can classify them by
how much water they need to grow:
Dry crops. These crops only need rainfall. Some
examples are wheat, barley and olive trees. 2
Irrigated crops. Farmers need to water these crops.
Some examples are corn, tomatoes and rice.
We can also classify crops by plant type: 2 Wheat is a dry and
herbaceous crop.
Herbaceous crops. These include cereals and garden
plants such as tomatoes, lettuce and potatoes. They
have to be planted every year.
Trees and bushes. These include fruit trees, olive trees
and vines. They are only planted once and grow to
produce fruit. 3

Crop farming is the activity of cultivating plants to

obtain different products. We can classify crops by
their water needs or by plant type. 3 The orange tree is an
irrigated crop.

ACTIVITIES

1 Crop farming provides different products.

Make a list and explain why they are
6.9 important.

2 WRITING. Draw a comic strip representing the

process of farming and label it. Make sure you
include all the stages.

3 How do dry crops obtain water?

4 SPEAKING. Look at the picture on the right and

explain what type of crop it is.

5 ICT. Search the Internet for information about

the most typical crops in your area. What type
of crops are they? Share your information with
your classmates.

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 KNOW HOW TO

Choose and look after a plant

Choose a plant that you will be able to look

after easily. For example, if you don’t have
a garden, look for plants that can live in
small pots.

Choose a plant.

1 Look at the plants in the photos.

Which ones can you look after?

2 Choose a plant you like. Explain

your choice.

Learn to look after your plant.

3 Find out about your plant’s needs.

Search for information on the Internet
or in books or magazines, or ask
an adult.

4 Make an index card with tips for

looking after your plant.

Looking after a geranium plant

It needs sunlight. Put it in a sunny area of your garden or near a window

if you keep it indoors.

It needs a lot of water in the summer, but little in the winter. Don’t spray
its leaves or flowers.

The soil should be moist. Make sure there are holes in the bottom of
the pot to allow excess water to drain out.

Fertilize when the plant is blooming.

Prune it in the spring. Cut dry leaves at the stem joint.

Watch the leaves for pests. If you need to use a pesticide, read
the instructions carefully.

68 sixty-eight
 FINAL ACTIVITIES
6

1 SUMMARY. Copy and complete with these words.

harvesting – shrubland – irrigated – stages – cultivating –

perennial – crops – habitat – sowing – herbaceous
6.10

The place where a plant lives is called its .

The life cycle of a plant includes the different of its life. According
to the length of their life cycle, plants can be annual or .
Vegetation is all the plants in an area, region or country. Forests,
deserts, grassland and are areas with different types of
vegetation.
Crop farming is the activity of plants to obtain different products.
These products are called .
The most important stages in the process of farming are: ploughing,
, fertilizing, irrigation, fumigation, pruning and .
Crops can be dry or . They can also be crops or trees and
bushes.

2 WRITING. Write what type of vegetation you can see in each photo.
Then, write its characteristics.

A B C D

3 THINK ABOUT IT. Can you identify which vegetation you have in
your area? Prepare a poster with photographs and label each plant
with its main characteristics.

Show your skills

Choose one of these activities:

A. Search for information about a desert: location,
name, size and main characteristics.
B. Choose an annual or a perennial plant and draw the different stages of its life cycle.
C. Write a story about a sad seed that cannot find the perfect place to grow.

sixty-nine 69
 TEST YOURSELF
Check your vocabulary
algae aquatic living things
which make their own food.
angiosperm a flowering
plant with beautiful flowers
that produces fruit with
seeds inside.
bacteria the smallest and
simplest living things.
bulb an underground stem with leaves that
stores food, like onions and garlic.
desert an area with arid soil, very little
water and few plants.
elaborated sap the food that plants make.
fern a non-flowering plant with large leaves
and an underground stem.
fertilizing the process in which farmers
add fertilizers to the soil that contain
mineral salts that help plants to grow.
forest an area where many trees grow
close together.
fumigation the process in which farmers
spray plants with pesticides to stop insects
harming the crops.
fungi living things that feed on other living
things and cannot move about.
1 Describe the living things in the photographs.
A B
70 seventy
grassland an area dominated by grasses.
gymnosperm a flowering plant with small,
simple flowers that does not produce fruit.
Its seeds are grouped together in cones.
moss a non-flowering plant with tiny
stems, leaves and roots.
pollen grains formed in the stamens
of the flower.
photosynthesis the process by which
plants make their own food.
ploughing the process in which farmers
turn the soil to make it ready for planting.
raw sap the mixture of water and mineral
salts that plants absorb through their roots.
rhizome a specialized stem that grows
horizontally underground, like irises.
shrubland an area of vegetation
dominated by bushes.
stolon a specialized stem that grows
horizontally above the ground, like
strawberries.
tuber an underground stem that develops
roots.
vegetation all the plants in an area, region
or country.
C
 SECOND TERM

Check your progress

Copy and write the correct answers in your notebook.

1 The main types of fungi are 6 Gymnosperms

mushrooms, moulds and… include…
a. yeasts. a. roses and
b. bacteria. daisies.
c. algae. b. mosses and ferns.
2 The smallest living things are… c. cypress and fir trees.

a. algae. 7 Poppies are…

b. bacteria. a. perennial plants.
c. fungi. b. bushes.
3 To carry out photosynthesis, plants c. annual plants.
need… 8 Corn, tomatoes and rice are…
a. light and mineral salts. a. irrigated crops.
b. water, mineral salts, and raw sap. b. dry crops.
c. water, mineral salts, carbon dioxide c. herbaceous crops.
and light.
4 Flowers, seeds, bulbs and rhizomes Check your answers
are related to…
Correct the answers you got wrong.
a. plant respiration.
Write in your notebook which
b. plant reproduction.
lessons you need to practise again.
c. plant classification.
5 Plants that produce fruits with seeds
inside are…
a. gymnosperms.
b. angiosperms.
c. ferns.

Think like a floriculturist

Some schoolchildren are going to visit the fields where

you cultivate plants for their flowers. Imagine how you
would use your plants to explain the following points:
What cultivated plants and wild plants are.
The different types of leaves.
The differences between grasses and bushes.
The parts of a flower.

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