Letter to the Editor ASPB POSITION STATEMENT ON PLANT BIOLOGY IN THE EARLY EDUCATION OF

The ASPB urges the educators and parents of young chil-dren to actively promote learning about plants and to cre-ate formal and informal opportunities for them to explore and experiment with plants. Like all animals, humans de-pend on plants for survival—plants are the basis of our food supply and are the original source of energy in most eco-systems. Plants affect the amount of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere and will be important in our strategies to mit-igate climate change. A basic understanding of how plants live and grow is essential as we plan for the uncertainties in our future; early childhood is the ideal time to begin that training. Sadly, children in the United States perform poorly on as-sessments regarding their understanding of both plants and the life sciences in general. For example, data from the Na