Living or not?

Year 3 Science – Science understanding and biology

Australian curriculum Learning objectives

  • ACSSU044[1]: Living things can be grouped on the basis of observable features and can be distinguished from non-living things.

Resources required

  • Is It Alive?[2]Online video plus facilities to view video. Duration: 3 minutes. (Teachers must be registered with Teachers’ Domain, which is free, to view video.)
  • Explanation sheet[3]on the characteristics of life, printed x class set or displayed on IWB.
  • Checklist[4] on the characteristics of life x class set.
  • Print outs of pictures of things[5]. (For large classes you may need to supplement these.)

Lesson outcome:Students explore the differences between living and non-living things and learn how to pick the characteristics between each set.

Lesson outline:
  1. Commence lesson by asking class how we know if something’s alive. A short discussion on this takes place, focussing on breathing and movement as two obvious characteristics of life.
  2. Ask students to name five things that are alive. List these on the board.
  3. Introduce the video, Is It Alive?, explaining that the video will show different things and class is to answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the question, ‘Is it alive?’ Record the class answers on the board, next to the name of the thing.
  4. Discuss answers with class, correcting any mistakes.
  5. Using the explanation sheet, explain all of the characteristics of a living thing – movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, elimination and nutrition. If possible, display explanation sheet on IWB. Explain that a living thing must demonstrate all of these characteristics to be classed as living.
  6. Each class table is given four or five pictures of thingsplus the checklist on characteristics. Write MRS GREN on the board as a quick reminder of what to check for. The task is to group the picturesinto living and non-living categories. (Review checklist prior to class and only use first five characteristics if considered more appropriate for the level of learning.)
  7. Each table presents their groupings to class for discussion.
  8. Complete the lesson by collecting checklists, switching off the display of the characteristic explanations and doing a quick quiz on the seven (or five) characteristics.

Homework/extension

Students write down ten things at their house and whether they are living or non-living.

Opportunity for further activity

Take a walk around the school grounds as a class or in groups and record ten things, living and non-living.

A fun video, The Biology Song[6] that goes through the seven signs of life can be played for class. Start video from 18 seconds in.

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