Teachers’ notes –Plant or Animal
Synopsis
This activity invites learners to consider their understanding of what constitutes a living thing, both an animal and a plant. They are invited to sort images of familiar things and are encouraged to give reasons for their decisions. Learners are shown a video of a living thing that has both plant and animal attributes and through questions and discussion are invited to decide which they think it is, providing reasons for their decision. Learners are then asked to consider the life processes they associate with animals and plants and to record and justify their ideas. Finally, they consider the life processes that may be common to both animals and plants.
Curriculum links
Interdependence of organisms:
4. through fieldwork, the plants and animals found in two contrasting local environments, e.g. identification, nutrition, life cycles, place in environment
Skills
Communication: 1 & 2
Enquiry – Planning: 2 & 3
Enquiry – Developing: 5, 6 & 7
Enquiry – Reflecting: 5 & 6
Activities
Tab 1
/ Learners are shown a series of images of familiar objects and are required to sort them into living and non-living things. They are encouraged to explain their reasoning and have an option of dragging images into a ‘not sure’ box if they have difficulty in deciding.Living things: flower, rabbit, tree, tortoise, pot plant.
Non-living things: cloud, teddy bear, cup cake, toy car, battery.
Tab 2
/ Learners are shown a series of images of living things and are required to sort them into animals and plants. They are encouraged to explain their reasoning and have an option of dragging images into a ‘not sure’ box if they have difficulty in deciding.Animal: human baby, dog, frog, rabbit, slug, spider, duck, egg.
Plant: strawberry, pot plant, grass, pea, leaves, tree, daffodils.
Tab 3
/ Learners are asked to observe a video of a Sea dragon – an animal with a strikingly plant-like appearance. Rollover questions relating to the video are included to encourage learners to articulate their ideas about how they decide whether a living thing is a plant or an animal.Tab 4
/ Learners are asked to consider the video of the Sea dragon and to decide if they think the living thing they saw is a plant or an animal. They use a balance scale template to drag an icon to show their own ideas and to understand at a glance the view of the whole class. All the class can take part in the discussion provoked by this tab. Encourage discussion amongst learners and ask them to justify their reasoning when placing the icon on the balance scale.Tab 5
/ Learners could think of questions they would like ask about the Venus flytrap and be encouraged to carry out research in order to answer the questions that have been generated.Tab 6
/ Learners are asked to consider the different things that all animals do. They are required to record their ideas under two headings – ‘Things that all animals do’ and ‘Things that only some animals do’. They are encouraged to explain their reasoning and can use a ‘not sure’ box if they wish to.The seven life processes common to animals are: movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion and nutrition (feed on other organisms).
Learners are likely to suggest a range of things that only some animals can do – this range includes speaking, flying, barking, swimming, walking upright, laying eggs and so on.
Tab 7
/ Learners are asked to consider the different things that plants do. They are required to record their ideas under two headings – ‘Things that all plants do’ and ‘Things that only some plants do’. They are encouraged to explain their reasoning and can record in a ‘not sure’ box if they wish to.The seven life processes common to plants are: movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion and nutrition.
Tab 8
/ Learners are asked to consider the different things that all animals and all plants can do.They are provided with seven boxes in which they can record their ideas.
At KS2 it is deemed that the seven life processes (movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion and nutrition) as listed above are common to both plants and animals. However, there are differences in these life processes as used by animals and plants. Animals can move from place to place, for example, whereas plants can move in response to different stimuli, e.g., sunlight. Animals cannot make their own food, whereas plants are able to do so using the process of photosynthesis.
Background information
Information relating to Tab 3:
The Sea dragon is a marine fish that is closely related to the sea horse, though it has a larger body. It has long leaf-like appendages protruding from all over its body. These are used for camouflage purposes, with movement being achieved by means of almost transparent fins. The sea dragon eats amphipods (tiny crustaceans) and the larvae of fish. In a similar fashion to the seahorse, the male sea dragon carries and incubates the eggs. The sea dragon is mainly found off the coast of Southern Australia and can grow to about 45 cm. It is a protected species under Australian law.
Information relating to Tab 5:
The Venus flytrap takes in mineral nutrients from soil, just like many other plants. They are native in some boggy areas of South and North Carolina where soil conditions are very poor. It is thought that the Venus flytrap evolved into a carnivorous (i.e. meat eating) plant to obtain the additional mineral nutrients it requires. The leaves open wide and have trigger hairs on the inside surface. When something such as a minibeast touches these hairs, causing them to bend, the leaves snap shut, trapping whatever touched the trigger hairs. The Venus flytrap mainly traps and digests arachnids (eight-legged minibeasts) and insects, the process of consuming the animal taking between five and twelve days to complete.
Carnivorous plants can be seen in action at The Princess of Wales Conservatory, Kew Gardens. There are many British carnivorous plants, some relatively easy to find species can be found in acid bogs in Wales.
Unit 1.3.1 teachers’ notes –Plant or Animal1