Living or non-living?
In this activity, students use two separate online interactives or paper-based graphic organisers to explore these key science ideas: what makes something living and what makes something an animal. This activity can be done individually, in pairs or as a whole class.
By the end of this activity, students should be able to:
describe the characteristics of living things
describe the characteristics of animals
classify things as living or non-living/animal or not, based on these characteristics.
Download the Word file (see link below) for:
introduction/background notes
what you need
what to do
extension ideas
student worksheets.
In the first interactive, students explore their ideas about the characteristics of living things.
Living or not?
Living
Non-living
Not sure
Unused items
- Butterfly
- Cow
- Fire
- Mushroom
- Dog
- Frog
- Teddy bear
- Girl
- Grass
- Whale
- Bicycle
- Worm
Living or not?
Use this interactive graphic organiser to consider whether something is living or non-living. Place each image where you think it belongs. This activity can be done individually, in pairs or as a whole class.
In the second interactive, students explore their ideas about the characteristics of animals.
Animal or not?
Animal
Not an animal
Not sure
Unused items
- Bicycle
- Butterfly
- Cow
- Dog
- Fire
- Frog
- Girl
- Grass
- Mushroom
- Teddy bear
- Whale
- Worm
Animal or not?
Use this interactive graphic organiser to consider whether something is an animal. Place each image where you think it belongs. This activity can be done individually, in pairs or as a whole class.
Related content
Explore additional Māori insight – māramatanga Māori – related to ao Māori understanding of the concept of living and non-living.
Use this article to explore the science ideas and concepts behind the characteristics of both living things and animals using earthworms as the example.
Useful link
Visit this website from the Australian education website (Victoria Department of Education and Training) for more information about common student alternative conceptions related to living things and classification.
