Science Worksheet · Grades 3–5
Photosynthesis Worksheet
A printable life-science worksheet for grades 3-5 that teaches photosynthesis as the way plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to make glucose and release oxygen. Students sort eight substances as inputs, outputs, or not used, then answer four short-response items about where photosynthesis happens and the plant-animal connection. A complete answer key is included.
Subject
Science
Grades
Grades 3–5
Skill Focus
Photosynthesis, life science
Lesson Length
20 minutes
Lesson Overview
About this worksheet
Photosynthesis is the engine of life science: it is how plants make their own food, and it is why animals (including humans) have oxygen to breathe. This worksheet gives kids a clean way to remember the equation – three things in, two things out, all happening inside the leaves – and adds two trap-check distractors so the recall is not automatic.
Section A is a sort task. Eight substances are listed; students write whether each one is an input (something the plant takes in), an output (something the plant makes), or not used in photosynthesis at all. The five substances that ARE involved (sunlight, glucose, carbon dioxide, oxygen, water) plus two distractors that often get mixed in (soil minerals and nitrogen gas) make the task more than pure recall – students have to think about what photosynthesis really needs.
Section B opens up the discussion on page 2. Students list the three inputs, name the two outputs and identify which one is the plant’s food, point at the leaves and chloroplasts as the location, and explain one way plants and animals depend on each other. The reference box at the top of page 1 teaches the equation, the location (leaves, chloroplasts), and the role of chlorophyll – everything a student needs to answer all four Section B items. Page 3 is a compact answer key.
How to Use This Lesson
Read the reference box together; sketch the simple equation (sun + water + carbon dioxide -> glucose + oxygen) on the board.
Do Section A independently; pause to discuss the two distractors (soil minerals, nitrogen gas) so students see why they are NOT used.
For Section B item 4, draw a quick arrow loop between a plant and a person to anchor the oxygen-CO2 exchange.
Pair with the Plant Life Cycle Worksheet or the Ecosystems Worksheet to keep the life-science thread going.
Use as a warm-up before a leaf-dissection or chlorophyll-extraction lab.
Printable Resource
A classroom-ready PDF with everything in one printable resource.
Full Member Resource · Printable PDF · 3 pages · Answer Key
Photosynthesis Worksheet
A printable life-science worksheet for grades 3-5 that teaches photosynthesis as the way plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to make glucose and release oxygen. Students sort eight substances as inputs, outputs, or not used, then answer four short-response items about where photosynthesis happens and the plant-animal connection. A complete answer key is included.
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