Living Things Lab
📖 Learn
In this lab, we will sort and classify things into two groups: living and nonliving.
How to Tell if Something is Living
Living things do these four things:
- Grow - They get bigger over time
- Need food and water - They need to eat and drink
- Move on their own - They can move by themselves
- Breathe - They need air to live
Living Things
🐕 🐈 🐦 🌳 🌷 🐟 🦋 🐝
Dogs, cats, birds, trees, flowers, fish, butterflies, and bees are all living!
Nonliving Things
🪨 🚗 📚 ⚽ 🧸 🪑
Rocks, cars, books, balls, teddy bears, and chairs are all nonliving.
💡 Examples
Let's practice sorting together!
Example 1: Is a dog 🐕 living or nonliving?
Think:
- Does a dog grow? Yes! Puppies grow into big dogs.
- Does a dog need food and water? Yes!
- Does a dog move on its own? Yes! Dogs can walk and run.
- Does a dog breathe? Yes!
Answer: A dog is LIVING!
Example 2: Is a rock 🪨 living or nonliving?
Think:
- Does a rock grow? No.
- Does a rock need food and water? No.
- Does a rock move on its own? No.
- Does a rock breathe? No.
Answer: A rock is NONLIVING!
✏️ Practice
Sort each thing into the correct group. Say "living" or "nonliving" for each one!
1. 🌷 A flower
Hint: Does it grow? Does it need water?
2. 📚 A book
Hint: Can a book eat or breathe?
3. 🐦 A bird
Hint: Does a bird move on its own?
4. ⚽ A soccer ball
Hint: Does a ball grow bigger?
5. 🐟 A fish
Hint: Does a fish need food?
6. 🪑 A chair
Hint: Can a chair move by itself?
7. 🌳 A tree
Hint: Trees start as tiny seeds and grow very tall!
8. 🧸 A teddy bear
Hint: Does a teddy bear need to eat?
9. 🦋 A butterfly
Hint: Butterflies start as caterpillars and grow wings!
10. 🚗 A car
Hint: A car needs a person to make it move.
✅ Check Your Understanding
Answer these questions to show what you learned!
1. Name TWO things that living things do.
2. Look around your room. Find one living thing and one nonliving thing.
🚀 Next Steps
- Go on a nature walk and find 5 living things
- Draw a picture showing living and nonliving things
- Move on to the next lesson to learn about sorting charts