Needs of Living Things Lab
Pick plants and animals and look at what each one needs to stay alive. Record your findings, count the needs they share, and see what makes plants and animals different.
Guided Experiment: Needs of Plants and Animals Investigation
Do plants and animals share any needs to stay alive? Predict which needs are the same for both, and which needs are different.
Write your hypothesis in the Lab Report panel, then click Next.
Pick a Living Thing
What Sunflower Needs
Sunflowers turn to follow the sun across the sky.
Compare to Both Groups
Key: Every Possible Need
Data Table
(0 rows)| # | Living Thing | Type | # Needs | Needs Food? | Needs Sunlight? | Shared with Both? |
|---|
Controls
Reference Guide
What Is a Living Thing
A living thing grows, takes in food or energy, and makes more of its kind. Plants and animals are both living things, even though they look very different.
What Plants and Animals Share
Plants and animals both need three things in common. Without these, no living thing can stay alive.
Look for these three in every row of the data table. They show up for every plant and every animal.
What Animals Need (Food)
Animals cannot make their own food. They have to eat plants or other animals to get energy.
Goldfish eat tiny plants and bugs in the water.
Penguins eat fish from the ocean.
Animals also need shelter to stay safe from the weather and from other animals.
What Plants Need (Sunlight)
Plants make their own food inside their leaves. They need sunlight to do it. That is why plants do not need to eat food the way animals do.
A plant in a dark room will not live very long. Try putting a plant near a window to see how it leans toward the light.