Study guide: Living Things and Their Needs
Match plants and animals to food, water, air and suitable places.
Ideas to explain in your own words
- Animals need water, air and food. A favorite toy may be enjoyable but is not a basic biological need. Use the supplied animal descriptions; do not handle animals.
- Most familiar green plants use light to make food and need water and air. Soil can support roots, but plants do not eat soil like an animal eats a meal.
- A habitat is a place with resources and conditions. A pond and meadow offer different resources. The pretend cards describe needs so you can match without guessing.
- Living things can change their surroundings. We describe visible changes before judging them. Supplied drawings show changes; there is no need to disturb nests or roots.
Useful vocabulary
- water
- needed liquid for body processes
- light
- helps green plants make food
- pond
- water habitat for the supplied fish
- digging
- soil moved to make a space
Watch your reasoning
- Check what water and food each mean. They describe different clues.
- Check what light and water each mean. They describe different clues.
- Check what pond and meadow each mean. They describe different clues.
A worked review example
Worked reference-card problem: a card states “needed liquid for body processes”; a second states “material animals eat for energy and growth.” The first fits water and the second fits food. The reason is the described function or change, not the order of the cards or a favorite name. If their descriptions exchange places, their category labels exchange too. Keep the supplied descriptions attached to the correct case. Worked reference-card problem: a card states “helps green plants make food”; a second states “enters a plant and supports its processes.” The first fits light and the second fits water. The reason is the described function or change, not the order of the cards or a favorite name. If their descriptions exchange places, their category labels exchange too. Keep the supplied descriptions attached to the correct case. Worked reference-card problem: a card states “water habitat for the supplied fish”; a second states “grassy place for the supplied grass-eater.” The first fits pond and the second fits meadow. The reason is the described function or change, not the order of the cards or a favorite name. If their descriptions exchange places, their category labels exchange too. Keep the supplied descriptions attached to the correct case. Worked reference-card problem: a card states “soil moved to make a space”; a second states “materials arranged into a structure.” The first fits digging and the second fits building. The reason is the described function or change, not the order of the cards or a favorite name. If their descriptions exchange places, their category labels exchange too. Keep the supplied descriptions attached to the correct case.
Make a practice plan
- Use an example from Find animal needs. Say what happens and point to the clue that helps explain it.
- Complete Find plant needs and correct the specific misconception in its feedback.
- Resolve a changed case from Match a place to a need, then combine the four ideas in the transfer task.