Life Science Teaching Resources
Take your students on a life science adventure with hundreds of teacher-created printable worksheets, digital activities and more resources designed to save you time on your lesson planning!
Bring living organisms to the surface, break down the life cycles of plants and animals and teach your students how and why we classify living things with fun and engaging activities created by teachers who have been in classrooms just like yours. Aligned with the NGSS curriculum, resources in this collection have all undergone careful review by an expert science teacher on the Teach Starter team to ensure they're ready for your lesson plans and your students.
Whether you're teaching life science for the first time or just need a quick refresher on some of the major vocabulary so you have it at the tip of your tongue for teaching, we've got you covered. Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Is Life Science and Why Do We Teach It?
We have to start somewhere, so why not start with a simple definition of life science?
Life science is the study of living organisms — including plants, animals and humans. We teach this branch of science in elementary and middle school to help our students understand the diversity, complexity and interdependence of life on Earth.
- Plus Plan
Natural Environments - PowerPoint
A Natural Environments-themed PowerPoint to add some color and design to your classroom PowerPoint presentations.
- Plus Plan
Wetland Word Wall Vocabulary
A set of wetland-related vocabulary word wall cards.
- Plus Plan
Basic Food Chain Worksheet
A basic food chain worksheet for your students to complete.
- Plus Plan
Informative Writing - Animal Research Task
Use a printable animal research organizer booklet for students to record facts about animals when learning to write informative texts.
- Plus Plan
The Digestive System Match-Up Activity
A match-up activity to use in the classroom when learning about the human digestive system.
- Plus Plan
Plant and Animal Adaptations Teaching Resource Pack
A teaching resource pack of posters, worksheets and activities for teaching animal and plant adaptation and evolution.
- Plus Plan
Assessment - Changes I Can See
- Plus Plan
Blubber Me Experiment
A 60 minute lesson in which students will investigate how blubber works as an insulator.
- Plus Plan
Physiological Adaptations
A 60 minute lesson in which students will explore the physiological adaptations of plants and animals.
- Plus Plan
Behavioral Adaptations
A 60 minute lesson in which students will explore the behavioral adaptations of plants and animals.
- Plus Plan
Structural Adaptations
A 60 minute lesson in which students will explore the structural adaptations of plants and animals.
- Plus Plan
Introduction to Adaptations
- Plus Plan
What Will Change?
- Plus Plan
Easy Pumpkin Drawing Video for Kids
Use a fun and easy pumpkin drawing video for kids as a lesson hook for your 1st and 2nd grade science lessons on plants!
- Plus Plan
Changes I Can See!
This Earth and Space Sciences unit explores how and why observable changes occur in the sky and landscape, and develops students' ability to describe these changes in their local environment.
- Plus Plan
Growth and Change Unit Plan
This Biological Sciences unit explores how living things grow and change. Animal offspring (including humans) are compared with their parents and plants are grown from seed in order to observe change over a period of weeks.
- Plus Plan
Living Things and Their External Features Unit Plan
This Biological Sciences unit covers a range of concepts relating to living things, such as their external features and the places in which their needs are met.
- Plus Plan
Living Things and Their Needs Unit Plan
This Science unit covers a range of concepts relating to the basic needs of living things.
- Plus Plan
The Importance of Environments Unit Plan
This Science unit addresses the importance of ecosystems to plants and animals and the ways in which they can be protected.
- Plus Plan
Plant and Animal Adaptations Unit Plan
This Science unit addresses the concept of plant and animal adaptations.
- Plus Plan
Big Changes!
A 60-minute lesson in which students will develop their understanding of the concept of metamorphosis.
- Plus Plan
Going Through Stages
A 60 minute lesson in which students will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of simple life cycles.
- Plus Plan
Mothers, Fathers, and Babies
A 60 minute lesson in which students will compare observable features of adults and offspring and identify the proper names of adults and their offspring.
- Plus Plan
A-Planting We Will Go!
A 60 minute lesson in which students will plant seeds following the procedure of the scientific method.
- Plus Plan
Let's Think Like a Scientist
A 60 minute lesson in which students will develop an understanding of the procedures scientists use and design one segment of an experiment.
- Plus Plan
How Do Living Things Change?
A 60 minute lesson in which students will activate prior knowledge about how living things change as they grow.
- Plus Plan
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
An assessment task in which students will demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the external features of small animals.
- Plus Plan
What is the Same and What is Different?
A 60 minute lesson in which students will compare the external features of small animals.
- Plus Plan
What Snacks Do Ants Prefer?
A 60 minute lesson in which students will investigate which foods ants prefer to eat.
- Plus Plan
Astounding Ants
A 60 minute lesson in which students will identify the external features of an ant.
- Plus Plan
Vital Vegetation
A 60 minute lesson in which students will investigate the different ways that vegetation can be beneficial.
- Plus Plan
Let's Build an Earthworm House
A 60 minute lesson in which students will identify that living things live in different places where their needs are met.