sunflower

Everyday

A very tall plant with a large flower that has a brown centre and yellow petals. Its seeds can be eaten or made into oil. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons, pupils grow sunflowers and measure how tall they get each week, a good activity for graphs. Young sunflowers turn their heads to follow the sun. Sunflower seeds are food for people and birds. Phrases: sunflower seeds, sunflower oil, grow a sunflower.

Examples

• Our sunflower grew taller than my dad. tree →
• We measured the sunflower every week. tree →
• Birds love sunflower seeds. tree →
• Sunflower oil is used for cooking. tree →
• Van Gogh painted famous pictures of sunflowers. tree →
• The sunflower's head is full of seeds. tree →

Note

Countable: a sunflower, sunflowers. One word. Myth: grown-up sunflowers do not keep turning all day; mostly young plants follow the sun, and old flowers usually face east. In maths, the sunflower's height over time makes a good line graph.