Seeds and Fruits

About this printable Seeds and Fruits science reading passage, NGSS-aligned (Grades 3-5)

This engaging 250-word reading passage introduces fourth-grade students to the important relationship between seeds and fruits, aligned with NGSS standard 4-LS1-1 and the Disciplinary Core Idea LS1.A. Students discover that fruits are specialized plant structures that form around seeds to protect them and help them spread to new locations. The passage uses familiar examples like apples, strawberries, nuts, bean pods, and dandelion puffs to illustrate how diverse fruits can be. Students learn about seed dispersal methods, including how animals help spread seeds by eating fruits. The content is presented in clear, age-appropriate language with bolded vocabulary terms and concrete examples. This passage is audio-integrated, allowing students to read along while listening, which supports diverse learning styles and reading abilities. A Spanish translation is included for English language learners. The passage comes with comprehension questions, writing activities, and graphic organizers to reinforce understanding of plant structures and their functions in seed protection and dispersal.

Written by Workybooks TeamPublished by Workybooks

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Sample passage and quiz from Seeds and Fruits

Squirrel dispersing acorn. — Nuts protect seeds and aid dispersal.

A fruit is the part of a plant that forms around seeds to protect them. Fruits help plants by keeping seeds safe as they grow and by helping seeds spread to new places where they can grow into new plants.

Many foods we call fruits are actually fruits in the scientific sense too. An apple is a fruit with seeds tucked inside its core. When you bite into an apple, you are eating the protective covering around the seeds. A strawberry is also a fruit, but it has tiny seeds on the outside instead of inside. Even foods we don't usually think of as fruits are fruits to scientists. Nuts are fruits with hard shells. Bean pods are fruits that split open when they dry out. A dandelion puff is a fruit too—each fluffy piece carries one seed through the air.

Fruits have an important job called seed dispersal, which means spreading seeds away from the parent plant. Some fruits attract animals with bright colors, sweet tastes, or good smells. When animals eat these fruits, they carry the seeds inside their bodies to new locations. Other fruits have special features like wings, hooks, or parachutes that help them travel by wind or stick to animal fur. This way, seeds don't all fall in one spot where they would compete with each other and the parent plant for sunlight, water, and nutrients.

Interesting Fact: A single strawberry can have more than 200 seeds on its surface, making it one of the only fruits that wears its seeds on the outside!