Life Features Lab

Content Standards

In this lesson, students will be able to identify and learn about key life processes: Growth, Nutrition, Movement, Respiration, Excretion.

Competency-based focus: observation, comparison, classification, and explanation of living characteristics.

Performance Standards

Students will be able to:

Identify and describe the basic processes of life (growth, nutrition, respiration, movement, and excretion).
Differentiate between living and non-living things using these processes.
Give examples of how these processes occur in both plants and animals.
Demonstrate observation skills through simple activities (e.g., breathing rate, plant movement).

Alignment Standards

Reference: NCERT Book Alignment

The lesson is aligned with the NCERT Grade 6 Science Textbook, Chapter 10 Living Creatures: Exploring their Characteristics, Section 1 – What Sets the Living Apart from the Non-living?

Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

Differentiate between living and non-living things.
Understand basic life processes: growth, nutrition, movement, respiration, reproduction, stimulus and excretion.
Relate these processes to plants, animals, and humans with examples.

Prerequisites (Prior Knowledge)

Students should have observed everyday things like plants, animals, vehicles, and toys.
Students should be able to describe simple actions such as eating, running, breathing etc.
Students should have curiosity about why some things grow, move, and need food, while others do not.

Introduction

In this session, students are introduced to the fundamental processes of life that differentiate living beings from non-living things. As a teacher, your role is to guide learners from their everyday observations (plants growing, animals moving, humans breathing) to the scientific explanation of life processes. Encourage inquiry by asking open-ended questions like “How do we know a tree is alive even though it cannot walk?”. Use simple activities (breathing counts, seed germination, observing pets/animals around) to help students connect classroom concepts with real life. This lesson also lays the foundation for deeper biological concepts they will study in higher classes, such as digestion, respiration, and reproduction.

Timeline (40 Minutes)

Title	Approximate Duration	Procedure	Reference Material
Engage	5	The teacher shows a pencil, a toy car, and a potted plant. Ask: “Which of these are living and why? ”Discussion leads to the idea that living things show certain processes that non-living do not. The teacher introduces the term basic processes of life.	Slides
Explore	10	Activity: Students list 5 things around them (some living, some non-living) and classify them. Observation-based questions: Does a car move like a dog? Does a toy grow bigger like you did as a child? Breathing check: Students count breaths after walking and running to notice respiration. Explore the VR Life features lab in the end to learn about the terminology and the process of the living beings.	Slides + Virtual Lab
Explain	10	Teacher explains each life process with textbook-based examples: Growth – A child grows, plants grow from seeds Nutrition – All living beings need food for energy and growth. Insectivorous plants like Drosera catch insects Class6_science Movement – Animals move freely; plants show movement in parts (flowers open, climbers twist) Respiration – Breathing in humans and animals; stomata in plants Class6_science Excretion – All living beings remove waste products from their body (sweat, urine, fallen leaves in plants). Use charts/diagrams from the book for visual explanation.	Slides
Evaluate	10	1. Conduct a MCQ test to check understanding of the key concepts.	Virtual Lab
Extend	5	Ask: Discussion: “What will happen if living beings stop one of these processes?” (e.g., no respiration = no life). Or Real-world link: Compare how humans, animals, and plants perform the same processes differently.	Slides

Life Features Lab

Introduction

In this lesson, living beings are all around us—plants, animals, and humans. But what makes them different from non-living things like stones, water, or toys? The answer lies in the special processes that only living beings can perform. They can grow, move, breathe, eat, and remove waste. They can also respond to their surroundings and reproduce to continue their kind.

In this lesson, we will explore these basic life processes—growth, nutrition, respiration, excretion, movement, stimulus and response, and reproduction. By the end, you will be able to clearly tell the difference between living and non-living things using these features.

Theory

Living beings are different from non-living things because they show certain basic life processes. These processes help them survive, grow, and continue their species.

The main life processes are:

1. Growth

Theory: Growth is a permanent and irreversible increase in the size and mass of an organism. It happens because of cell division (increase in the number of cells) and cell enlargement.
Examples:
- A seed germinates and grows into a plant.
- A caterpillar grows into a butterfly.
- A baby gradually grows into an adult.

2. Nutrition

Theory: Nutrition is the process by which living organisms obtain food and utilize it for energy, growth, and repair of the body.
Types:
- Autotrophic (self-feeding): Plants prepare their own food by photosynthesis using sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water.
- Heterotrophic (dependent feeding): Animals depend on plants or other animals for food.
Examples:
- Plants making glucose during photosynthesis.
- Cows eating grass (herbivores).
- Lions eating deer (carnivores).
- Humans are omnivores, eating both plants and animals.

3. Respiration

Theory: Respiration is the process by which living beings break down glucose (food) in the presence of oxygen to release energy. This energy is used for various life activities.
Examples:
- Plants making glucose during photosynthesis.
- Cows eating grass (herbivores).
- Humans inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide.
- Plants take in oxygen through tiny pores on leaves called stomata.

4. Excretion

Theory: Excretion is the removal of waste materials formed inside the body during life processes. If wastes accumulate, they can harm the organism.
Examples:
- Humans excrete urine through kidneys, sweat through skin, and carbon dioxide through lungs.
- Plants remove oxygen (as a by-product of photosynthesis), and waste like gums and resins through leaves or stems.

5. Movement

Theory: Movement is the ability to change position or show motion. It may be external (visible) or internal (movement of substances inside the body).
Examples:
- Animals move in search of food, water, and shelter. For instance, birds fly, fish swim, humans walk.
- Plants show slow movements:
  - Sunflowers turn towards the sun (heliotropism).
  - Climbers twine around a support.
  - Lotus flowers open in the morning and close at night.

6. Stimulus and Response (Irritability)

Theory: Living beings can sense changes in their surroundings (stimuli) and respond to them, which helps them survive.
Examples:
- Humans pull back their hands when touching a hot object.
- Mimosa pudica (touch-me-not) leaves fold when touched.
- Animals run away when they sense danger.

7. Reproduction

Theory: Reproduction is the process by which living beings produce new individuals of their own kind. This ensures continuity of life and prevents extinction.
Types:
- Asexual reproduction: A single organism produces offspring (e.g., yeast budding, amoeba binary fission).
- Sexual reproduction: Male and female gametes fuse to form offspring (e.g., humans, flowering plants).
Examples:
- Humans give birth to babies.
- Frogs lay eggs that hatch into tadpoles.
- Plants produce seeds that grow into new plants.

8. Living and Dead

Theory: An organism is considered living when it shows all the above life processes. If it stops performing them, it is considered dead.
Examples:
- A tree is alive because it grows, respires, and reproduces.
- A wooden chair made from dead wood does not show any life processes, hence it is non-living.

These features together define what it means to be alive.

Vocabulary

This is the list of vocabulary terms used throughout the lesson.

Growth – Increase in size and height of a living being.
Nutrition – The process of obtaining and using food for energy and growth.
Respiration – Process of taking in oxygen and giving out carbon dioxide to release energy.
Excretion – Removal of waste materials from the body.
Movement – Change in position by animals or movement of parts in plants.
Stimulus – Any change in the environment that causes a reaction in a living being.
Response – The reaction of a living being to a stimulus.
Reproduction – The process of producing new individuals of the same kind.
Dead – A state when an organism no longer shows any life processes.
Living – An organism that carries out basic life processes such as nutrition, respiration, and growth.

Life Features Lab

Introduction

Welcome to the Life Features Lab, an immersive virtual reality experience designed to help you explore and understand the fundamental characteristics of living organisms. This guide provides a detailed walkthrough of the VR activity, ensuring a seamless and educational experience.

Key Features

3D immersive environment with plants, animals, and non-living objects.
Interactive animations showing growth, respiration, movement, and excretion.
Stimulus–response demo (e.g., Mimosa leaves folding)

MCQs are integrated at the end of each module for engagement.

Step-by-Step Procedure for VR Experience

Step 1: Enter the Virtual Lab

Students enter a 3D environment showing a garden with plants, animals, and non-living objects like rocks and toys.

Step 2: Observe Growth

Students see a plant growing taller.

Step 3: Learn about Nutrition and Respiration

An animal is shown eating grass, and arrows indicate how sunlight provides energy to plants.

Step 4: Understand Movement and Response

Students interact with a Mimosa (Touch-me-not) plant in VR to see its leaves fold.
Animals move freely around the environment, while flowers open and close with sunlight.

Step 4: Understand Excretion and Reproduction

A 3D model shows the process of excretion in animals.

Step 5: Evaluation

After interaction, students proceed to the quiz:
- 2 MCQs