Science Notes. Year 5

DIVERSITY OF MATTER.
LIVING AND NON – LIVING THINGS
Things around us can be grouped into two (2). These groups are living and non – living things.
Some examples of things we see in our immediate environment are; books, trees, cats, buildings,
zebra, human being, etc.
Living things are things that have life and them and can perform all life processes (the things
living organisms do to show that they are alive / have life in them are called life processes).
Non – living things are things that do not have life in them and are not able to perform all life
processes.
Living things can generally be grouped into two (2). They are; a. plants b. animals.
Both plants and animals perform all life processes. Life processes are the things living things do/
undergo to show that they are alive. Some of these life processes include;
 Movement
 Growth
 Respiration
 Excretion
 Sensitivity
 Movement: Both plants are animals move part of their whole body from one place to
another. In plants, movement is seen when plants move branches, leaves and stems when
the wind blows. Also, plants exhibit movement while they grow. Creeping and climbing
plants spread from one place to another. In animals, movement is seen in a number of
ways. While others move by running, some move by galloping, crawling, hopping, etc.
Complete the table below by identifying some animals and their mode of movements.
Animal Mode of movement
 Growth: Both living and non – living things exhibit growth. Growth is the processes by
which living organisms increase in size and length. In plants, their growth pattern begin
with a seed, then to a seedling and to a full plant. Some plant also begin their growth by
plantings some (vegetative) parts of a parent plant. In animals, mammals (eg, human)
give birth to their young ones alive. Their growth pattern begin with a baby, through to an
adult. Other animals like reptiles, birds, insects, etc. lay eggs. They hatch their eggs and
the little animal begin to grow.
 Sensitivity: All living things are able to sense and respond to changes in their
environment. Sensitivity is the ability of a living thing to sense its environment. Animals
like living this are able to use their sense organs to be able to sense their environment.
These sense organs are; tongue, skin, eyes, ears and the nose. Animals are also sensitive
to the weather. In plants, some plants (eg; the mimosa plant) sensitive to touch. They
close u when touched. Plants are also sensitive to weather conditions and sunlight.
 Excretion: To excrete means to remove metabolic (chemical) waste from the body.
Excretion is therefore the removal of metabolic waste from the body of an organism.
Livings things get rid of waste substances from their body in other to stay alive. Plants
bring out oxygen after photosynthesis and also bring out water through their leaves, this
process is known as transpiration. Animals also excrete waste from their body. Some of
these waste products includes; urine, sweat, feaces and carbon dioxide.
 Respiration: Both plants and animals breathe in and out. To respire means to breathe in
and out. Plants respire through tiny holes in their leaves called the stomata. They breathe
in carbon dioxide and breathe out oxygen. Animals, on the other hand breathe in oxygen
and breathe out carbon dioxide. The organs responsible for respiration are called the
respiratory organs. Example of such organs are; lungs, nose, pharynx, trachea, etc.
DIFFERENCES AMONG THINGS THAT ARE LIVING, DEAD AND THINGS THAT HAVE NEVER
BEEN ALIVE.
The things we see in our environment can be generally grouped into three. These are;
 Things that are alive: all living things are classified under this group because they are alive.
Some examples of things that have live in them are; plants, mammals, rodents, insects, reptiles
and all other animals.
 Things once alive: some living things may not stay alive for every. These group of things are
classified under things that had life in them. Some examples of things that were once alive are;
dead animals, wooden tables, dry bones, dried leaves, charcoal, etc.
 Things that have never been alive: Things that have never been alive are things do not have life
in them. These things have never experience being alive. Some examples are; soil. Water, stone,
rocks, plastics metals, glass, etc.

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DIVERSITY OF MATTER.

LIVING AND NON – LIVING THINGS

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