Lesson Notes By Weeks and Term v3 - Primary 3
Animals
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Animals
Download the Lessonotes Mobile Nigeria 2025 app for faster lesson access on Android and iPhone.
Subject: Basic Science
Class: Primary 3
Term: 3rd Term
Week: 3
Theme: Living And Non Living Things
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Watch on YouTubePupils should be able to give reasons why animals are living things
This topic covers the essential characteristics that define animals as living things. These characteristics are observable and help distinguish animals from non-living objects. Students will also learn a basic comparison of these characteristics with those of plants. A. What are Animals? Animals are a diverse group of living organisms that typically move voluntarily and feed on other organisms. They are found everywhere – in our homes, farms, forests, rivers, and oceans. Examples include humans, dogs, cats, goats, chickens, fish, and insects. B. Reasons Why Animals Are Living Things (Characteristics of Living Things) Animals exhibit several key characteristics that classify them as living things.
These include:
1. Movement: Animals can move from one place to another on their own. This movement allows them to find food, escape danger, find mates, or seek shelter.
Explanation: A dog runs, a bird flies, a fish swims, a snail crawls, and even humans walk or run. This ability to change location is a primary indicator of life in animals. Nigerian
Example: A goat moves from one patch of grass to another to graze; a chicken walks around the compound searching for food; a child runs during playtime.
2. Feeding/Nutrition: Animals need food to get energy, grow, and stay healthy. They cannot make their own food like plants do. They eat other plants or animals.
Explanation: Food provides the necessary nutrients for an animal's body to function. Different animals eat different types of food (e.g., herbivores eat plants, carnivores eat meat, omnivores eat both). Nigerian
Example: A cow eats grass and hay; a cat eats fish or meat; humans eat various foods like yam, rice, and meat.
3. Respiration/Breathing: Animals take in air (specifically oxygen) and give out carbon dioxide. This process releases energy from the food they eat.
Explanation: Respiration is a vital process where living cells take in oxygen and release carbon dioxide, breaking down food to produce energy. Nigerian
Example: Humans breathe through their nose and mouth; a fish takes in oxygen from water through its gills; a dog pants to cool down and breathe.
4. Growth: Animals increase in size and develop over time.
Explanation: From birth or hatching, animals grow larger and become more complex. A young animal will eventually become an adult animal of its species. Nigerian
Example: A small chick grows into a big hen; a puppy grows into a full-sized dog; a human baby grows into a child and then an adult.
5. Excretion: Animals remove waste products from their bodies. These waste products are generated during metabolic processes and can be harmful if not removed.
Explanation: Waste products can be solid (faeces), liquid (urine), or gaseous (carbon dioxide during breathing). Nigerian
Example: A dog urinates and defecates; humans also excrete waste products through urine, faeces, and sweat.
6. Reproduction: Animals produce young ones of their own kind.
Explanation: This ensures the continuation of the species. Some animals lay eggs (e.g., chickens, fish), while others give birth to live young (e.g., humans, goats). Nigerian
Example: A hen lays eggs which hatch into chicks; a goat gives birth to kids; a woman gives birth to a baby.
7. Sensitivity/Response to Stimuli: Animals can detect changes in their environment and react to them.
Explanation: They react to things like touch, light, sound, heat, and smell. This helps them find food, avoid danger, or communicate. Nigerian
Example: A dog barks when it hears an unfamiliar sound; a cat runs away when approached by a stranger; a child pulls their hand away from a hot stove. C. Comparing Plants and Animals as Living Things Both plants and animals are living things because they share some common characteristics, but they also have distinct differences.
Similarities (Both are Living Things): Both grow. Both reproduce (produce young ones/seeds). Both need nutrients/food (animals eat, plants make their own). Both excrete waste. Both respond to stimuli (plants turn towards sunlight, animals react to touch). Both respire (breathe). Differences (How Animals Differ from Plants): * Movement: Animals can move freely from place to place. Most plants are fixed to one Plants and Animals as Living Things Both plants and animals are living things because they share some common characteristics, but they also have distinct differences.
Similarities (Both are Living Things): Both grow. Both reproduce (produce young ones/seeds). Both need nutrients/food (animals eat, plants make their own). Both excrete waste. Both respond to stimuli (plants turn towards sunlight, animals react to touch). Both respire (breathe). Differences (How Animals Differ from Plants): Movement: Animals can move freely from place to place. Most plants are fixed to one spot (though parts like leaves or flowers may move).
Food:** Animals get their food by eating other organisms (plants or animals). Plants make their own food using sunlight, water, and air (photosynthesis).
A. Introduction (5-10 minutes)
Teacher Activity: Begin by displaying pictures of various animals common in Nigeria (e.g., a cow, a chicken, a dog, a fish, a human child) and some non-living things (e.g., a stone, a chair, a car).
Student Activity: Students identify the objects in the pictures. The teacher asks students to sort them into "living" and "non-living" categories based on their prior knowledge.
Prompt questions like: "Which of these can eat? Which can move on its own?"
B. Presentation / Lesson Development (25-30 minutes)
Teacher Activity: Introduce the topic "Animals" and state that animals are living things.
Explain the first characteristic: Movement. Demonstrate simple movements (walking, jumping). Ask students to identify how different animals move (e.g., "How does a bird move?", "How does a fish move?"). Explain Feeding/Nutrition. Ask students what they ate for breakfast/lunch. Discuss what common animals (e.g., goat, dog) eat. Emphasize that animals need food to live and grow. Explain Respiration/Breathing. Ask students to feel their chest rise and fall. Explain that all animals breathe air to live. Explain Growth. Show pictures of a young animal and its adult form (e.g., chick to hen, puppy to dog). Discuss how children also grow taller and bigger. Explain Excretion. Simply state that animals get rid of waste from their bodies (e.g., urine, faeces). Explain Reproduction. Discuss how animals produce young ones (e.g., hens lay eggs, goats give birth to kids). Explain Sensitivity/Response to Stimuli. Give examples like a dog barking at a stranger, a human reacting to heat. Throughout the explanation, use simple language and real-life Nigerian examples.
Introduce the comparison with plants: Briefly highlight similarities (both grow, breathe, etc.) and key differences (movement, food source).
Student Activity: Students actively participate by answering questions about animal movement, feeding habits, and growth using familiar animals. Students observe pictures and listen attentively to explanations. Students demonstrate simple breathing and movements. Students volunteer examples of animals they know and their characteristics.
C. Conclusion (5 minutes)
Teacher Activity: Summarise the main reasons why animals are living things (they move, feed, breathe, grow, excrete, reproduce, and are sensitive). Reiterate the basic differences in movement and food acquisition between animals and plants.
Student Activity: Students recall and mention one or two characteristics of living things they learned about animals.
Question 1: A farmer noticed that his goat was moving around the field, eating grass, and later had a baby kid. Which two characteristics of living things did the farmer observe in his goat?
Solution: The farmer observed: Movement: The goat was "moving around the field." Feeding/Nutrition: The goat was "eating grass." Reproduction: The goat "had a baby kid." (Any two of these are acceptable. Teachers should accept correct characteristic even if phrasing differs slightly.)
Commentary: This question directly checks understanding of multiple characteristics of living things in a familiar animal.
Question 2: Why can we say that a pet dog is a living thing, but a toy car is not? Give two reasons.
Solution: A pet dog is a living thing because: It moves on its own (runs, walks). A toy car only moves when pushed or powered by batteries. It eats food (like dog biscuits or meat). A toy car does not need food. It grows from a puppy to an adult dog. A toy car remains the same size. It breathes. A toy car does not breathe. (Any two valid reasons are acceptable.)
Commentary: This question requires students to differentiate between living and non-living things by applying the characteristics learned to a familiar animal.
Question 3: Both a human and a mango tree are living things. State one way they are similar and one way they are different, concerning their characteristics as living things.
Solution: Similarity: Both a human and a mango tree grow. Both a human and a mango tree reproduce (humans have babies, mango trees produce seeds). Both a human and a mango tree breathe/respire. (Any one of these is acceptable.)
Difference: A human moves from place to place, but a mango tree usually stays fixed in one spot. A human eats food to get energy, while a mango tree makes its own food using sunlight. (Any one of these is acceptable.)
Commentary: This question tests the comparison aspect of the evaluation guide, encouraging students to identify commonalities and distinctions between different types of living things.
Animal Care and Welfare: Students can apply their understanding to care for pets or livestock. Knowing that animals need food, water, movement, and shelter helps them become responsible caregivers. For example, understanding that a chicken needs food and water to grow and lay eggs, or that a dog needs to move and play to stay healthy. This connects to farming practices common in many Nigerian communities.
Health and Environment: Understanding that animals breathe and excrete highlights the need for clean environments. For instance, poor waste disposal can harm animals (and humans). It also helps students appreciate the role of different animals in the local ecosystem, such as insects pollinating crops or birds eating pests.
Food Sources and Economy: Recognizing animals as living things that grow and reproduce helps students understand the source of various food items (e.g., meat from cows/goats, eggs from chickens, milk from cows). This knowledge is fundamental to appreciating local agriculture and food systems in Nigeria.