Free printable science worksheets and charts

Life Cycle of a Plant Worksheet

Seed, sprout, seedling, adult plant: build a printable plant life cycle worksheet with cut-and-paste, labeling and vocabulary.

This free life cycle of a plant worksheet generator makes printable worksheets that show how a plant grows from a seed to an adult plant and back to seed. It runs in your web browser with no sign-up, and nothing you make is uploaded or sent to a server. You tick the activities and options you want, and the printable pages update live as you go. The default sheet asks students to cut and paste the stages in order, fill in the blanks, and match vocabulary words to their meanings. You can also add a diagram to label, a picture to color, short answer questions, or a draw-and-label box. The same stages fit a bean plant, a sunflower or an apple tree, so one sheet works for any of those lessons.

How to make a plant life cycle worksheet

  1. The page opens on the plant life cycle. The Worksheet menu switches to the butterfly, frog or chicken if you need one of those instead.
  2. Tick the activities on the left. The default is Put the stages in order, Fill in the blanks, and Vocabulary matching. You can also tick Label the diagram, Labeled picture to color, Short answer questions, or Draw and label.
  3. For Put the stages in order, choose Cut and paste or Number the stages.
  4. Set Word bank on or off. Turning it off makes the sheet harder.
  5. Turn on Answer key pages if you need the answers. They appear in blue.
  6. Turn Color pictures off if you want black line art for coloring.
  7. Type a Worksheet title and tick Name and date line if you want them.
  8. Choose Items per activity (4, 6, 8, 10, or 12).
  9. Pick US Letter or A4 as the paper size.
  10. Check the pages on the right as they update.

Click New version to shuffle the word bank, matching letters, and order, so each student gets a different copy. Click Download PDF to save a sharp PDF that prints at true size. Click Print to open the print dialog with only the worksheet pages. Click Copy link to share a link that reopens the same worksheet, including its version.

What are the stages of a plant life cycle?

A plant life cycle has four stages: seed, sprout, seedling, and adult plant with a flower. The cycle then repeats, because new seeds that land in good soil start the process again, and the arrows on the worksheet show it as a circle.

A seed holds a baby plant and its food. When it has water, warmth, and air, it germinates. The root grows down into the soil first, then a sprout pushes up. A seedling is a young plant with its first leaves. The adult plant grows flowers that make seeds, and many flowers grow into a fruit around the seeds. A tree such as an apple tree takes years to reach the flowering stage, so the same stages apply but take much longer.

What does a seed need to germinate?

A seed needs water, warmth, and air to germinate. Germination is the word for the moment a seed begins to grow into a new plant.

The first sign is the root, which grows down into the soil. After that, the sprout pushes up toward the light. Once the young plant has its first leaves, it is a seedling. The vocabulary words on the worksheet, such as germination, sprout, and seedling, follow this order, so students can match each word to the stage it describes.

What do the parts of a plant do?

The roots take in water from the soil and hold the plant in place. The stem holds the plant up and carries water to the leaves. The leaves use sunlight, air and water to make food for the plant. The flower makes seeds, and many flowers grow into a fruit around them. The diagram on the worksheet labels the seed, sprout, seedling, adult plant, flower and roots.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an answer key for the plant life cycle worksheet?

Yes. Turn on Answer key pages and the tool adds pages with the answers filled in. The answers are shown in blue, so keep those pages separate from the student copies.

Can I print the plant life cycle worksheet in black and white for coloring?

Yes. Turn Color pictures off to get black line art that children can color. It also saves ink. You can also use Labeled picture to color for a picture with every label filled in.

Is there a plant life cycle worksheet for kindergarten?

The worksheet has no fixed grade level, so you choose the difficulty. For younger children, keep the word bank on, set Items per activity to 4, and choose Cut and paste for the stage ordering.

Can I make a different version for each student?

Yes. Click New version to shuffle the word bank, matching letters, and order. The version is kept in the link, so you can share the same copy again.

Can I print the worksheet on A4 paper?

Yes. Choose A4 as the paper size. If you are in the US, keep US Letter.

Does the same worksheet work for a sunflower or a bean plant?

Yes. The stages are the same for a bean plant, a sunflower, or an apple tree. The worksheet uses general plant stages, so it works for any of these plants in a class about life cycles.