Living Things Unit Overview

The Science4Us Living Things Unit is filled with the types of learning K-2 students already love, helping students explore the difference between living and nonliving things, and building their ability to categorize plants and animals.

Though some living things are obviously alive, others are not so clearly living. For example, a clam and a rock are hard on the outside. Both may lie still for a long time. When observing them neither one may seem to be alive. So students must learn four characteristics of living things to help them determine whether something is alive or not alive.

The Living Things Unit introduces these complex topics in a developmentally friendly way. Students practice and hone skills such as classifying, categorizing, observing, and record keeping, all while playing games, participating in hands-on activities, and testing their knowledge with animated online evaluations. Many of the concepts will be new to young students, but each module begins with students’ prior knowledge and connects to previous Science4Us content.

Lesson Modules

Living/Nonliving

At Science4Us, the study of living things begins with the Living and Nonliving module. Students explore the similarities and differences between living and nonliving things and learn four characteristics that all living things share (they have needs, they are made up of parts, they respond to change, they reproduce). Students learn to identify living and nonliving things through clues, comparing what they learn to the characteristics they know.

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Plants

The Plants module familiarizes students with the ways in which plants meet the four characteristics of living things. Students learn the parts and functions of plants and even invent their own plant in an illustrated online activity. They learn how plants meet their needs for food, water, air, and a place to live.

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Animals

Young students are naturally curious about animals. Learning about living beings as part of elementary life science appeals to their sense of wonder and helps them develop empathy for all types of creatures. The Animals module builds on that fascination for students. An animated host begins the unit by introducing students to wild animals in their habitats. In online and offline activities, students broaden their understanding of animals by learning to identify and classify animals into six categories: mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates.

A new addition to our Animals module extends the life science topics to include the human body. Students not only learn more about the parts like the brain, stomach, and muscles, but also their functions.

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