Is it alive? (Identifying Living and Non-Living Things)

Students will be able to classify objects as living and nonliving. Students will be able to identify what living things need to survive.

Duration
Less than 1 hour
Lesson Type
Traditional Lesson

Lesson Created By: AshleyLawter

Essential Question

What is the difference between a living and non-living thing?

Grade(s):

  • Pre K

Subject(s):

Recommended Technology:

Promethian Board
iPad

Other Instructional Materials or Notes:

  • 2 Hula hoops
  • Set of toy animals (1 per class)
  • What's Alive? by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld
  • Living and Nonliving Things by Lindsay Schemm
  • Nonliving objects
  • Living objects

Lesson Progression

Introduction (5 minutes)

  • Ask the class if they are living or nonliving.
  • Ask students if their pets at home are living or nonliving.
  • Ask students to identify what they need to survive. Write "food," "water," "shelter," and "air" on the board.
  • Explain to students that today they will be learning about living and nonliving things.

Explicit Instruction/Teacher Modeling (10 minutes)

Guided Practice/Interactive Modeling (10 minutes)

  • Read students the story What's Alive.
  • Then, sing the following song together to the tune of Frere Jacques:

It is living!
It is living!
I know why!
I know why!
It eats and breathes and grows,
It eats and breathes and grows,
It's alive!
It's alive!

Independent Working Time (15 minutes)

  • Now, place two hula hoops on the ground and present the class with various living and nonliving objects.
  • Have each student come to the hula hoops and place objects in the hula hoop in either the living or the nonliving category. For example, give students a banana, a truck, and a plant and ask which one is alive.
  • Continue until every student has had a chance.

Extend

Differentiation

  • Enrichment: Have students in need of enrichment draw objects on a paper that are living.
  • Support: Read additional books about living and nonliving things to students who are struggling with the concept.

Review

Assessment

  • Assessment should be based on how students do in the sorting activity.

Review and Closing (10 minutes)

  • Have each student go around the room and find a nonliving object.

Teacher Notes

Differentiation

  • Enrichment: Have students in need of enrichment draw objects on a paper that are living.
  • Support: Read additional books about living and nonliving things to students who are struggling with the concept.

View Resource

Living and Non-living Things

Things which can grow, move, breathe and reproduce are called living things.
Living things can also feel emotions like anger, fear and happiness.
After growing and living for a long time living things ultimately die.
Examples of living things are human beings, animals and plants.
Plants cannot move from one place to another. However, plants move their stem to face the sun. Hence, they are also living things.
Things which cannot grow, move, breathe and reproduce are called nonliving things. They

View Resource

Living and Non-Living Things

Learn the difference between living and nonliving things.

View Resource

Assessments

Assessment

  • Assessment should be based on how students do in the sorting activity.