Section 1
Living Things Display Key Characteristics
Organisms grow by changing with age, respond to their surroundings, and reproduce to create more of their own kind. These traits differentiate them from nonliving things in our environment.
Grade 3 students explore the characteristics that distinguish living things from nonliving things in this lesson from Chapter 1 of Science: A Closer Look. Students learn key vocabulary and concepts including organisms, responding to the environment, reproduction, and cells, as well as the basic needs all living things share, such as food, water, space, and air. The lesson also guides students through a hands-on observation activity to identify and compare living and nonliving things found in nature.
Section 1
Living Things Display Key Characteristics
Organisms grow by changing with age, respond to their surroundings, and reproduce to create more of their own kind. These traits differentiate them from nonliving things in our environment.
Section 2
Organisms Need Resources To Survive
All living things require food for energy, water for bodily functions, gases like oxygen, and adequate space. These necessities come from their environment, and organisms will die without them.
Section 3
Cells Build All Living Organisms
Living things consist of tiny building blocks called cells. Some organisms have just one cell, while others have millions. These microscopic structures are the fundamental units of life.
Section 4
Microorganisms Clean Our Environment
Tiny living things help remove pollution by consuming harmful substances like oil and dangerous chemicals. These microscopic cleaners transform pollutants into waste that is safe for the environment.
Book overview
Jump across lessons in the current chapter without opening the full course modal.
Continue this chapter
Expand to review the lesson summary and core properties.
Section 1
Living Things Display Key Characteristics
Organisms grow by changing with age, respond to their surroundings, and reproduce to create more of their own kind. These traits differentiate them from nonliving things in our environment.
Section 2
Organisms Need Resources To Survive
All living things require food for energy, water for bodily functions, gases like oxygen, and adequate space. These necessities come from their environment, and organisms will die without them.
Section 3
Cells Build All Living Organisms
Living things consist of tiny building blocks called cells. Some organisms have just one cell, while others have millions. These microscopic structures are the fundamental units of life.
Section 4
Microorganisms Clean Our Environment
Tiny living things help remove pollution by consuming harmful substances like oil and dangerous chemicals. These microscopic cleaners transform pollutants into waste that is safe for the environment.
Book overview
Jump across lessons in the current chapter without opening the full course modal.
Continue this chapter