Living Things and Their Needs
Living Things and Their Needs
Items in this lesson
Living Things and Their Needs
Open with the big idea that science helps us sort things into living and non-living, and understand what living things need to stay alive.
Our learning goal
I can explain how living things are different from non-living things, and describe what plants and animals need to live.
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What words come to mind when you hear living things?
Use this to surface simple prior ideas such as grow, eat, water, air, plants, animals and people. Invite students to notice which words appear most.
Living things
Living things are alive.
They can:
grow
need food and water
need air
have young
Keep the word 'living' linked to clear signs of life. At this level, avoid edge cases and focus on familiar examples such as plants, pets and people.
Examples of living things
Some living things are:
plants
animals
people
A tree grows.
A cat needs food.
A child breathes air.
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Non-living things
Non-living things are not alive.
They do not:
grow
breathe
need food
have young
Use simple, everyday objects. The contrast works best when students compare one living example with one non-living example.
Living or non-living?
Living: cat, bird, tree, fish
Non-living: rock, chair, toy, table
A good clue is this:
Living things need food, water and air.
This slide lands the first subtopic by giving a practical rule students can use when classifying examples.
Which one is a living thing?
chair
tree
rock
toy
Checks the living/non-living contrast from slides 2 to 5. Distractors are all familiar non-living examples from the deck.
Living and non-living
Living things are alive. They need food, water and air. A rock is non-living because it does not grow or breathe.
The blanks use key words taught in the first subtopic and each can fit in only one place from meaning.
What all living things need
All living things need:
food
water
air
Without these, living things cannot stay alive.
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Plants need these things
Plants need:
water
air
sunlight
soil
Sunlight helps a plant make food.
Keep the wording simple: plants need sunlight to make food. Do not over-explain photosynthesis at this level.
Animals need these things
Animals need:
food
water
air
Different animals eat different foods, but all animals need these basic things.
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What happens without what they need?
No water → plant becomes weak → plant dies
No sunlight → plant cannot make food → plant dies
No air, food or water → animals cannot live
Use the arrows only because this slide is about simple cause and effect. Keep examples concrete and easy to picture.
What helps a plant make food?
soil
water
sunlight
stem
Tests the key cause-and-effect idea from slides 6 to 9. Stem is included because students may confuse plant parts with plant needs.
What living things need
All living things need food, water and air. Plants also need sunlight to make food. Without water, a plant becomes weak and may die.
This consolidates shared needs and plant-specific needs using wording already seen on slides 6 to 9.
Parts of a plant
A plant has:
roots
stem
leaves
flower
Point out each part clearly. If possible, sketch a quick plant shape on the board to reinforce the labelled parts.
What roots, stems and leaves do
Roots take in water from the soil.
Stem holds the plant up.
Leaves take in air and help make food.
Keep functions short and memorable. 'Roots drink water' may be a helpful spoken simplification, but keep the slide wording scientific enough: roots take in water.
What the flower does
The flower helps the plant make seeds.
Seeds can grow into new plants.
This gives a simple reproduction link without adding extra detail that would overload early learners.
A plant needs all its parts
Each part has a job.
Roots get water.
Leaves help make food.
The stem supports the plant.
The flower helps make seeds.
This slide brings structure and function together: plant parts matter because each part helps the plant live.
Which part takes in water from the soil?
flower
roots
leaves
stem
Checks plant part function, not just naming the parts.
Jobs of plant parts
The stem holds the plant up. The leaves help make food. The flower helps the plant make seeds.
All blanks are load-bearing plant terms from slides 10 to 13, with plausible distractors from the same topic.
How animals get air
Animals need air to live.
A dog, bird, cat and person all breathe air.
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How fish get air
Fish live in water.
Fish get air from the water.
They cannot live out of water for long.
At this level, the key fact is that fish still need air, but they get it from water rather than breathing like people do.
Breathing in and out
Breathing in → we take in air
Breathing out → we push air out
Do not overload this with gas names unless needed. The main idea is the movement of air in and out.
Air helps living things stay alive
People and animals need air every day.
If a living thing cannot get air, it cannot stay alive.
This completes the subtopic by linking breathing to survival in a direct way.
How do fish get air?
from sunlight
from soil
from water
from food
Targets the special case in slides 14 to 17: fish still need air, but get it from water.
Breathing and air
People and animals need air every day. When we breathe in, we take in air. When we breathe out, we push air out.
Simple sequence check using the exact lesson wording from slides 16 and 17.
How animals get food
Animals need food for energy and growth.
Some animals eat plants.
Some eat other animals.
Some eat both.
Keep the idea broad before introducing the three key words on the next slides.
Three food groups
Meat eaters
Carnivores eat animals.
Example:
lion
Plant eaters
Herbivores eat plants.
Examples:
rabbit
cow
Explain that these are ways to group animals by what they eat.
Food is a basic need
Animals need food, just like plants need water and sunlight.
Food helps animals live, move and grow.
This slide connects feeding back to the wider lesson theme of needs for life.
Caring for living things
We should care for plants and animals.
Good care means giving them what they need to live.
Shift from facts to responsible behaviour, but keep it science-based by linking care to needs.
Good choices and bad choices
Bad choices
Good choices
throw rocks at animals
step on plants
leave living things without water
feed pets
give water
water plants
care for a garden
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Why care matters
Plants and animals cannot always help themselves.
People can help living things stay healthy and safe.
You can mention simple everyday examples such as filling a pet bowl or putting a plant in sunlight.
Science helps us care well
When we know what living things need, we can care for them better.
Food, water, air and the right home all matter.
This resolves the lesson arc: understanding needs is useful because it guides care.
Which is a good way to care for a living thing?
step on plants
throw rocks
give water
leave it dry
Checks behaviour choices from slides 22 to 25 and links care to needs.
Glossary
living thing - something that is alive
non-living thing - something that is not alive
air - the gases around us that living things need
soil - the ground where many plants grow
roots - the part of a plant that takes in water
stem - the part of a plant that holds it up
leaves - plant parts that help make food
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Glossary
flower - the part of a plant that helps make seeds
seed - a small part that can grow into a new plant
breathe - to take air in and push air out
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