Living Organisms Intro

Overview

This 45-minute lesson introduces Year 5 students to the fundamental characteristics of living organisms, focusing on the seven life processes (MRSGREN). Students will develop a clear understanding of what defines something as living, non-living, or once living through hands-on activities and discussion, in line with the UK National Curriculum for Science (Key Stage 2: years 3-6). The lesson emphasises enquiry-based learning and scientific vocabulary development.

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Curriculum Links

National Curriculum for England: Science – Key Stage 2

• Pupils should be taught to:
  • Describe the differences in the life cycles of a mammal, an amphibian, an insect and a bird.
  • Describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals.
  • Recognise that living things can be grouped in a variety of ways.
  • Explore and use classification keys to help group, identify and name a variety of living things in their local and wider environment.

Learning Objectives:
By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Identify and describe the seven life processes (MRSGREN).
• Differentiate living, non-living, and once living things using given criteria.
• Use scientific vocabulary related to living organisms confidently.

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Resources

• Interactive whiteboard or projector
• Printed images/cards of various objects (plants, animals, rocks, toys, fossils)
• Large MRSGREN posters (with icons and simple explanations)
• Mini whiteboards and dry wipe markers for students
• “Living or Not?” sorting trays or boxes
• Copies of a simple MRSGREN checklist (age-appropriate wording)
• Timer or stopwatch

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Lesson Structure

1. Starter Activity (5 minutes)

“Living or Not?” Quick Sort

• Display a selection of images or objects (living, non-living, once living) on the board.
• Ask students to think-pair-share: which are living things? Which aren’t? Why?
• Record a few quick responses, emphasising observations without giving the full answer yet.

Purpose: Activate prior knowledge and provoke curiosity.

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2. Introduction to MRSGREN (10 minutes)

MRSGREN Explanation & Visuals

• Introduce the acronym MRSGREN (Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Growth, Reproduction, Excretion, Nutrition).
• Use a colourful poster and short, clear definitions with everyday examples for each process.
• Pair each life process with a simple demonstration or question:
  • Movement: “Can a plant move?”
  • Respiration: “Who breathes oxygen?”
  • Sensitivity: “How do animals respond to light or sound?”
  • Growth: “Do things get bigger over time?”
  • Reproduction: “How do animals/ plants have babies or seeds?”
  • Excretion: “How do living things get rid of waste?”
  • Nutrition: “What do living things eat or absorb for energy?”

Interactive Tip: Use mini whiteboards for students to write or draw their example for one life process.

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3. Main Activity: Group Sorting Challenge (20 minutes)

Living, Non-Living, or Once Living?

• Divide class into 8 groups (4 students each).
• Give each group a set of mixed cards/objects showing living things (e.g., dog, oak leaf), non-living things (rock, plastic toy), and once living things (wood, fossil leaf).
• Groups use the MRSGREN checklist to decide where each card should go.
• Challenge: Can they find one example that meets some but not all MRSGREN? Discuss this as a class.
• Rotate groups for quick sharing: each group explains one tricky item and why it fits a category.

Formative Assessment: Check understanding through group explanations, correct use of life processes vocabulary.

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4. Plenary & Reflection (7 minutes)

“Living Organisms Detective” Wrap-Up

• As a class, list 3 things that all living organisms have in common (using MRSGREN).
• Invite 3 volunteers to share one new thing they learnt today.
• Optional: On mini whiteboards, students write true/false statements about living organisms, e.g., “All living things can move.”
• Correct misconceptions and reinforce that not all living things move visibly but all perform life processes.

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Assessment

• Teacher observations during discussions and sorting activity.
• Informal questioning to check key vocabulary understanding.
• Plenary quick quiz on mini whiteboards.

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Differentiation & SEND Support

• Provide vocabulary mats with MRSGREN keywords and symbols for less confident readers.
• Use paired work to support students needing extra help.
• Challenge higher attaining students to find examples of living organisms that might be less obvious (e.g., fungi, bacteria).

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Extension Ideas

• Assign a home activity where children collect objects from their garden or park to classify into living, non-living, once living.
• Begin a scientific journal to record observations about local living things throughout the unit.

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Teacher Reflection Points

• Did all students engage with the MRSGREN processes?
• Which life processes were easiest or hardest for students to understand?
• How effective was the group sorting activity in challenging misconceptions?
• Were scientific terms internalised and used confidently? Consider adapting vocabulary or examples for next lessons.

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Feel free to enhance the lesson with simple animations, or incorporate local natural history specimens to deepen pupil connection with their immediate environment. Empower students with the language and tools to begin asking questions about the living world around them.