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.
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Winter Animal Adaptations - Clip Cards
Discover which behavioral adaptations animals use to survive the winter with a set of Animals in Winter Clip Cards.
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Animal Adaptations Digital Learning Activity Slides
Discover a variety of structural, behavioral, and physiological adaptations with an Animal Adaptations Digital Learning activity.
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Inherited and Acquired Characteristics - Worksheet Pack
Determine if animal features and characteristics are inherited or acquired traits with an engaging Animal Traits Cut and Paste Worksheet Pack.
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Platypus Adaptations - Reading Passage & Questions
Learn about the physical and behavioral adaptations of the platypus with a set of printable reading comprehension worksheets for 4th grade.
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Life Cycle of a Butterfly Activity - Printable Accordion Book
Re-create the life cycle of a butterfly with a printable butterfly life cycle accordion book craft.
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Penguin Craft & Writing Template
Research and write about penguins and their adaptations, then create a fun penguin craft to display student work.
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All About Bowerbirds PowerPoint
Learn about the fascinating creatures that are Bowerbirds with this engaging and beautifully illustrated set of teaching slides.
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Adapting, Migrating, & Hibernating Animals Research Project
Set this classroom project for students to explore the topic of how seasons affect animals, and develop a species-specific profile on a chosen animal.
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Plant and Animal Adaptations Flipbook
Use this fun flipbook to teach students about adaptations while allowing them to connect to prior knowledge by answering questions on each page.
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Plant Adaptations - Reading Comprehension Worksheets
Read and learn about unusual plants and their adaptations with a pack of printable reading comprehension worksheets.
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Plant Adaptation Puzzles - Matching Activity
Match plants with their unique adaptations using a printable puzzle-matching activity.
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Plant Life Cycle Passage and Graphic Organizer
Give your students an opportunity to and sequence the life cycle of a plant with a reading passage and worksheet.
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Plant Adaptations - Research Task Cards
Research behavioral, structural, and physiological adaptations with printable plant adaptation task cards.
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Unusual Plant Adaptations (3rd Grade Science Worksheet)
Teach your 3rd graders about unusual plant adaptations with a printable adaptation worksheet.
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What Could Happen? - Environmental Changes Worksheet
Explore the effects of environmental change on plants and animals with a printable science worksheet.
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Plant Adaptations- Poster
Learn about different plants' behavioral, structural, and physiological adaptations with a printable plant adaptation anchor chart.
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Plant Life Cycle Sorting Activity
Help your students identify the stages in a plant’s life cycle with a sorting activity..
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Healthy and Unhealthy Plants Worksheets
Discover what plants need to grow to be healthy with differentiated worksheets about healthy and unhealthy plants.
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Inherited and Acquired Plant Traits Research Project
Help your students uncover the different inherited and acquired traits of plants with a research project!
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Plant Journal Observation Worksheets
Observe and record information about the features of plants with a plant journal worksheet.
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Capillary Action in Plants - Science Experiment Booklet
Observe and record learning about the Capillary Action of Plants with a printable science experiment guidebook.
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Plant Cell Diagram - Anchor Chart
Highlight and review the different parts of a plant cell with a printable diagram of a plant cell.
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Exploring Plants - Teaching Slides
Explore the characteristics of plants in our environment with an interactive teaching slide presentation.
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Plant Life Cycle - Cut and Paste Worksheet
Help your students remember the life cycle of a plant with a cut and paste life cycle worksheet.
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Parts of a Plant - Observation Flipbook
Draw and write to record observations of the parts of a plant with a printable plant flipbook.
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Food Chains – Worksheet
Use this worksheet to identify and describe the flow of energy in a food chain.
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Animal Classification Posters
Display information about birds, mammals, amphibians, fish, and reptiles with this poster pack.
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World Biomes Map
Locate and explore the different biomes of the world with this engaging classroom poster.
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Predator or Prey? Forest Animals – Worksheet
Sort animals according to whether they are classified as predators, prey, or both with this worksheet.
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Desert Mini-Book - Printable Reader
Engage your students and inspire them to read and learn about plants and animals in the desert with a printable book for 2nd grade.
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Life Cycles – Instructional Slide Deck
Teach your students about the life cycle of plants and animals with this 19-slide instructional slide deck.
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How Organisms Survive – Worksheet
Use this worksheet to identify and describe different animal and plant adaptations which help them survive in their environment.
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