Worms

Worms

Unit: Life Science

1^st Grade

Big Idea: Characteristics of living and non-living things

Focus Question: What are the characteristics that differentiate non-living things from living things? How do we know something is living?

Launch/Hypothesis/Prediction:

The students will be handed a series of pictures, and will work in groups of five. These pictures will contain living things as well as things that are non-living. In their groups they are to decide which things are living and which things are not living and why. After the ten minutes is up within their groups, we will come back together as a whole class and create a chart:

Item One:	Living:	Non-Living:	Why?
Item Two:	Living:	Non-Living:	Why?
Item Three:	Living:	Non-Living:	Why?
Item Four:	Living:	Non- Living:	Why?
Item Five:	Living:	Non-Living:	Why?

The chart will be created on the board like the one above and we fill out the chart as a class. This chart is our prediction chart since we have not yet explored living and non-living things. The class will mark living if we think the item is a living organism; and then we will write in the chart the reason why we think the item from the picture is living. Ask students if we are living things. This will be a personal connection that will help them better understand the characteristics.

 Predictions may include but are not limited to: I think a living thing has to eat and drink to stay alive because I know I am a living thing and that is what I have to do to stay alive. I think a non-living thing can survive anywhere because it doesn’t need food or water to stay alive. I think living things will grow because I grow.

Materials:

-       Gummy worms

-       Real worms

-       Paper plate

-       Paper clips

Planning:

            After we have made our predictions as a whole class using the pictures on what non-living things are and living things are as a class, we will pass out the paper plates, gummy worms, paper clips and real worms. Students will be instructed to observe and use their senses (not taste) to discover the characteristics of the earthworm and gummy worm. Instruct students not to eat the gummy worms. Have students copy the following chart in their science notebooks

Data:

Type of Worm	What does it feel like?	What does it smell like?	What does it look like?	How many paper clips long is it?	Living or non-living? Why?
Earthworm
Gummy Worm

Claims/Evidence:

            I claim that living things have to have oxygen to survive because earthworms come out of the dirt. I claim that living things will grow because the earthworms were different sizes. I claim that all living things need some form of food and water to survive because the gummy worms do not need food or water to survive.

Conclusion:

            As the students fill in their chart in groups the teacher will prepare a chart on the board that represents what we predicted about living and non-living things and our new ideas based on what we observed during our investigation.

-          What is the difference between earthworms and gummy worms?

-          How are they similar? Different?

-          Who has longest earthworm? Why are they different sizes?

-          Do you think the earthworms and gummy worms eat and drink? Why or why not?

Allow the students to eat their gummy worm if they want to.