Science lesson plan · Kindergarten (Reception and Year 1 in England) · 45 minutes
What plants and animals need to stay alive
Animals and habitats
CCSS NGSS.K-LS1-1England: EYFS Understanding the World: The natural worldEngland: KS1 Y2 PlantsEngland: KS1 Y2 Animals, including humans
Objective and success criteria
Students will: What plants and animals need to stay alive.
- I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
- I can explain each step and say why it works.
- I can check my answer and spot a mistake.
Before and after
Needs first: What animals need to survive
Leads to: How plants, animals and people change their surroundings
Materials: Animal picture cards, Habitat maps, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).
Warm-up · 5 min
- Quick retrieval from earlier learning (What animals need to survive). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
- Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
- A pet hamster needs… (food, water, air and a safe cage to shelter in / only water / nothing, it looks after itself / only food) → food, water, air and a safe cage to shelter inPrompt: Pets need the same basic things as wild animals.
- What animals need: which statement is true? (Animals need air to breathe. / Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants. / Animals only need food, never water. / Fish do not need oxygen.) → Animals need air to breathe.Prompt: Think about what you need to live.
- What animals need: which statement is NOT true? (Many animals need shelter from weather and predators. / Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants. / Animals need air to breathe. / Animals need water to survive.) → Animals can make their own food from sunlight, like plants.Prompt: One sentence is a mistake.
Hook · 5 min
- Show a picture of an unusual animal and ask where it might live and how it survives there.
- Share the objective: What plants and animals need to stay alive. Read the success criteria together.
I do: model it · 10 min
- Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
- Example: What do plants AND animals both need?
- Step 1: All living things need water to stay alive.
- Step 2: So the answer is: water
- Answer: water
- Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.
We do: guided practice · 10 min
- Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
- Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
- A goldfish lives in a tank. Which of these does it need to survive? (a sandy beach / bright lights all night / clean water with air in it, and food / a bed and a blanket) → clean water with air in it, and foodPrompt: Fish breathe air that is mixed into the water.
- Needs of living things: which statement is true? (Pets do not need air. / Plants eat bugs to get all their food. / Plants need light to make their food. / Only animals need water.) → Plants need light to make their food.Prompt: Plants make food; animals eat food.
You do: independent practice · 10 min
- Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
- Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.
The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.
Exit ticket · 5 min
- Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
- Who needs this, plants or animals: food to eat? (plants / animals) → animalsPrompt: Who makes its own food, and who has to find it?
- Needs of living things: which statement is true? (Animals need food, water, air and shelter. / Pets do not need air. / Only animals need water. / Animals can make food from sunlight.) → Animals need food, water, air and shelter.Prompt: Plants make food; animals eat food.
Watch out for
- Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
- Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"
Support and stretch
Support
- Review first: What animals need to survive.
- Use concrete materials: animal picture cards.
- Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
- Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.
Stretch
- Move on to: How plants, animals and people change their surroundings.
- Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
- Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.
Homework and more practice
Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/kindergarten.
Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder