PRIMARY SCIENCE - EXPLORE LESSON 15 SEPTEMBER 2017

Living or Non-Living
Using criteria to classify living and non-living things

Year 3
OBJECTIVES

Develop
criteria to
decide if
something is
living or
nonliving

AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUM:

Living things can be grouped on the basis ofobservable features and can be distinguished from
non-living things(ACSSU044)

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

Samples of living and non-living things (preferably real rather than photos of)

Living vs Non-living worksheet and 1x enlarged

Book or ebook: Do you know which ones will grow? By Tom Slaughter Classify things
as living or
Clip boards; pencils; group member tags (e.g. leader, equipment manager)
nonliving,
based on those
criteria
INTEGRATION

1 2 3
ENGLISH LITERACY FOCUS ICT
Students participate in Do you know which ?????
oral discussion with ones will grow?
peers.
By Tom Slaughter

1
LIVING VS NON-LIVING 15 SEPTEMBER 2017

MOTIVATION LESSON STEP

1. Instruct students to prepare for the
science lesson by placing a pencil,
rubber and clipboard on their desk
and sit on the mat quietly waiting
for the next instructions (writing
these instructions on the board
may assist students or restating
utensils needed before students
begin)
2. Introduce the text Do You Know
Which Ones Will Grow? By Tom
Slaughter. Ask students to predict
what this book will be about.
Select few students to share.
3. Read through book and instruct
students to pay close attention as
you will be asking questions
afterwards
4. Discuss the book and what it was
about through questioning, this
will lead on to task
1. Introduce and explain the Living or Non-Living Task for
students:
Students will be placed into groups and individually given a
Living or Non- Living work sheet and clipboard. The
students task is to observe the samples that are placed at
their group stations. Using the checklist, the student is
determine whether the samples are living, non living or
dead. When the timer sounds students will need to rotate
with their group to the next station (this will need to be
broken up and allow for guidance for students)
2. Demonstrate task to ensure understanding. Use an example
and an enlarged sheet
3. Establish groups and assign each group to start at a certain
station
4. Explain to students once they are to place their living or non
living worksheet on their clipboard (thought it would be
good to have their own worksheets to determine their
previous knowledge but good to work within a group?)
5. Instruct all students back to the mat for discussion
6. Discuss the elements that make them living (Group
discussion maybe lead to a voting system on what they are
using an enlarge sheet on the interactive white board- asking
students why they thought they were alive?)
7. Based create a checklist to examine items that are living or
non living
8. Students to examine the samples again based on the
checklist created?

ASSESSMENT
Write objectives on an observation grid.
Use these as a guide for your observations of the activity.
Record students achievement on the grid and comment on how
they came to their conclusions.
Collect criteria worksheets as evidence and to use to complete
observation grid/checklist of objectives:
1. Develop criteria to decide whether something is living or non-
living
2. Classify things as living or non living, based on that criteria