Comparing characteristics of living things
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can compare the characteristics of living things and describe their similarities and differences.
Key learning points
- Anything can be observed and compared to another thing, based on similarities and differences.
- Observable characteristics are properties about things that we can describe using five senses.
- Comparing and grouping living things can help us to identify them.
Keywords
Observable - Something observable is something that we can see or describe using our senses.
Characteristic - A characteristic is a feature or quality of something that we can use to help identify it.
Compare - We compare things by looking at what is the same and what is different.
Similarity - A similarity is something two or more objects have in common.
Difference - A difference between two objects or things is something that is not similar or the same about them.
Common misconception
Pupils may only consider animals' characteristics to be observable if we can see them in a photo, rather than us also being able to observe their behaviour over time.
Explain that when scientists classify living things they make many observations of how that living thing moves, behaves and reproduces, as these are all characteristics we can observe to help us identify and classify things.
Teacher tip
Encourage children to bring in photographs of their pets to be included in comparison activities, or use photos that have been taken on previous school trips to zoos or farms.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the word to the correct definition.
something that is not the same between things
something that things have in common
Q2.Match the sense organ to the sense we use it for.
sight
hearing
smell
taste
touch
Q3.Why might Laura be the odd one out of these three children?
Q4.How do we observe something?
Q5.Which two of these can all living things do?
Q6.Which of these are living things?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Anything can be compared to another thing. What do we do when we compare things to each other?
Q2.Jun compares these two animals. Which of these is a difference between them?
Q3.Laura compares these two animals. Which of these is a similarity between them?
Q4.The features of a living thing that we can see or describe using our senses are called characteristics.
Q5.Which of these are observable characteristics of this plant?
Q6.Why might scientists compare living things to each other?
To help you plan your 6 science lesson on: Comparing characteristics of living things, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 6 science lesson on: Comparing characteristics of living things, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 science lessons from the Why we group and classify living things unit, dive into the full primary science curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.