Living and Non-Living Things
TOPIC: Living and Non-Living Things
SUBTOPIC: Characteristics and Classification of Living Things
CLASS: Primary 6
DATE: ____________________
PERIOD: ____________________
DURATION: 40 minutes
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to:
- Define living and non-living things.
- State the major characteristics of living things.
- Classify items into living and non-living categories.
- Give examples of living and non-living things around them.
KEY VOCABULARY WORDS
- Living things
- Non-living things
- Growth
- Movement
- Respiration
- Sensitivity
- Excretion
- Reproduction
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
- Chart showing living and non-living things
- Pictures of plants, animals, stones, books, water, etc.
- Real objects (leaf, toy, stone, bottled water)
INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY
Teacher displays a plant (leaf), stone, and toy to the class and asks:
👉 “Which of these is alive?”
👉 “How do you know it is alive?”
Pupils respond. Teacher then explains that things around us can be grouped into living and non-living things.
CONTENT OF THE LESSON
Meaning of Living and Non-Living Things
Living things are things that have life. They can carry out basic activities such as breathing, moving, and reproducing. Examples: human beings, goats, birds, trees.
Non-living things are things that do not have life. They cannot perform life activities on their own. Examples: stones, chairs, water, books.
Characteristics of Living Things
All living things share common features known as MR NIGER D:
Characteristic | Meaning | Example |
M – Movement | Ability to change position | A cat runs |
R – Respiration | Use of oxygen to release energy | Humans breathe |
N – Nutrition | Ability to feed | Plants make food |
I – Irritability (Sensitivity) | Response to changes | Plant bends towards light |
G – Growth | Increase in size | Baby grows taller |
E – Excretion | Removal of waste | Humans sweat and urinate |
R – Reproduction | Ability to give birth | Hen lays eggs |
D – Death | End of life | Old man dies |
These characteristics distinguish living from non-living things.
Classification of Things Around Us
Living things: People, animals, birds, insects, fish, plants.
Non-living things: Rocks, cars, books, shoes, water, air.
Living vs Non-Living Things
Living Things Non-Living Things
– Human – Stone
– Dog – Book
– Mango Tree – Chair
– Fish – Car
CLASS EXERCISE 1
- Define living and non-living things.
- List any four living things around your school.
- Mention two differences between living and non-living things.
CLASS EXERCISE 2
Fill in the blanks:
- All living things must ______ to stay alive.
- Plants make their own food through ______.
- The removal of waste products from the body is called ______.
- A stone is an example of a ______ thing.
- A goat is an example of a ______ thing.
CLASS EXERCISE 3
Draw two living and two non-living things you can find at home.
ASSIGNMENT (MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS)
- Which of these is NOT a living thing? (a) Goat (b) Chair (c) Boy (d) Mango tree
- The ability to respond to changes in the environment is called (a) Nutrition (b) Sensitivity (c) Respiration (d) Excretion
- The process by which plants make their own food is (a) Growth (b) Photosynthesis (c) Respiration (d) Reproduction
- Which of these is a characteristic of living things? (a) Movement (b) Sleeping (c) Shining (d) Breaking
- The opposite of living things is called (a) Plants (b) Animals (c) Non-living things (d) Humans