Mini Minds Hub · Free printable

Circle the Living Things

  • StageEarly Years
  • CostFree
  • FormatPrintable PDF
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Circle the Living Things is a free printable science activity for young children, roughly ages 5 to 7. Children look at the things shown on the sheet and draw a circle around the ones that are alive. All they need is a pencil. The sheet also gives a simple way into a big science question: what makes something alive?

It comes from the Mini Minds Hub, the free library of printables from Jaques of London, the British games and toy company that has been making games for families since 1795. Print the sheet, hand it over and use the ideas further down this page to talk it through together.

What is on the sheet

The sheet asks one clear question: which of these things are alive? Children look carefully at each thing shown and decide whether it is alive. They then draw a circle around the living things. There is no writing to do. It is a quick, hands on way to practise sorting and to start a conversation about living things.

What does alive mean in science?

In primary science, a living thing is something that carries out the processes of life. Children often learn them with the rhyme MRS GREN: movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion and nutrition. Young children do not need all seven words. Three simple ideas are enough to start with: living things grow, need food or energy, and respond to the world around them.

Deciding what is alive is harder than it looks. Children often think that anything that moves must be alive, or that only animals count. Both ideas are common and both are worth talking about. The National Curriculum for England covers this in the strand on living things and their habitats, where children sort things into those that are living, those that were once living and those that were never alive.

Quick facts about living things

  • Living things need energy to stay alive.
  • Living things grow and change over time.
  • Many living things are so small that you need a microscope to see them.
  • Scientists often sort things into three groups: living, once living and never alive.
  • Living things notice changes around them and respond to them, such as light or temperature.

Skills and curriculum link

  • Observing closely
  • Sorting and classifying
  • Scientific vocabulary
  • Giving reasons
  • Careful decision making

Ideas to help you talk about living things

  • Look for signs of lifeAsk what a living thing does. Does it grow? Does it need food or water? Does it change over time? These questions work for any item on the sheet.
  • Moving is not the whole storySome things move without being alive, for example when they are pushed or blown. Some living things move very little. Movement alone does not settle it.
  • Three groupsSome things are alive, some were once alive and some have never been alive. Naming all three groups helps children see that not alive can mean more than one thing.
  • Use their own wordsAccept simple language such as it eats, it grows or it needs water. Gently add the scientific word afterwards.

Key words

  • AliveSomething that is alive grows, needs energy and responds to the world around it.
  • LivingAnother word for alive.
  • Not aliveSomething that has never been alive, or is no longer alive.
  • GrowTo get bigger or change over time.
  • SortTo put things into groups that share something in common.
  • ReasonThe because part of an answer. It explains why you made your choice.

How to use it

  1. Print the sheet and give your child a pencil.
  2. Read the question aloud: which of these things are alive? Ask your child to look at everything shown before they circle anything.
  3. Let them circle the things they think are alive. Keep your own opinions back until they have finished.
  4. Ask them to tell you about one or two of their choices. Say, "What makes you think that?" Giving reasons is our own suggestion and is not part of the sheet.
  5. Talk about anything that surprised them. Come back to the sheet another day and see whether they would change any choices.

Help, stretch and game ideas

If it feels too hard

Ask three simple questions about each thing: does it grow, does it need food or water, and does it change over time? Say them aloud each time. Work on one thing at a time, and ask your child to tell you what they notice.

To stretch confident children

Ask your child to sort the same things into three groups on a piece of paper: alive, once alive and never alive. Then they can draw one more thing for each group and explain to you why it belongs there.

Make it a game

Play Alive or Not Alive. One person names or draws something. The other says alive or not alive and gives a reason. If the reason is sensible, they score a point. Swap roles after each turn and play to ten points.

Mistakes to watch for

Watch forA child thinks that anything that moves must be alive.

Try thisTalk about things that move only when pushed or blown. Ask whether the thing moved by itself, and whether it needs food or grows.

Watch forA child only circles animals and leaves out other living things.

Try thisAsk what living things need to stay alive. Then check each thing on the sheet against those needs, not just against how it looks.

Watch forA child circles things because they look friendly or have a face.

Try thisSay that a face or a smile does not tell us whether something is alive. Go back to the signs of life: growing, needing energy and responding.

Talk about it

  • What does it mean to be alive?
  • How can you tell if something is alive?
  • Is there anything on the sheet that you were not sure about? Why?
  • What do living things need to stay alive?
  • Can something be alive and not move much?
  • Can something move and not be alive?

Take it off the page

Nature walk sort

Go outside with a bag or tray. Collect things from the ground, such as stones, twigs or leaves. Take care not to harm living things. Sort what you find into groups and talk about your choices.

Draw a living things poster

Fold a piece of paper into two. Draw things that are alive on one side and things that are not alive on the other. Add a label for each.

Mystery description

Describe a living thing without naming it. Say what it needs, how it moves and where it lives. The other person guesses what it is.

Who it is for

Parents

Let your child do the circling first, then ask about their choices. Do not rush to correct them. A child who explains their thinking gives you a clear picture of what they understand and what needs more talk.

Teachers

Use it as a starter, a quick check before a science unit on living things, or a plenary after a lesson on sorting. It suits early primary classes and links to the living things strand. Ask pupils to explain choices to a partner.

Home educators

Use it as a short science starter, then follow it with a walk in the garden or park. Children can look for and sort living things in the real world. The sheet works well alongside any topic on plants, animals or habitats.

Where this fits in learning

Before this sheet, children learn to name and describe everyday things around them. They also learn to sort objects by simple features such as colour, size or shape. Sorting living from not living builds on those early skills.

After this sheet, children can look at habitats, food chains and the needs of animals and plants. They can also learn about things that were once alive. Later in primary school, they meet the seven life processes in more detail and start to classify living things into groups.

Questions parents and teachers ask

What age is Circle the Living Things for?

It suits early primary children, roughly ages 5 to 7. Younger children can do it with a grown up reading the question aloud. Older children can add reasons for their choices or sort things into more groups.

What do children actually do on the sheet?

They look at the things shown and draw a circle around the ones that are alive. There is no writing to do. Any talking about reasons or extra sorting is our own suggestion and goes beyond the sheet.

What do children need to know first?

They do not need much. It helps if they can name common animals, plants and objects. A simple idea that living things grow and need food or water is useful, and you can build that up as you talk.

Does the sheet link to the National Curriculum?

Yes, at strand level. It supports early science work on living things and their habitats, where children learn to tell apart things that are living, once living and never alive. It also supports working scientifically through observing and sorting.

How can I check my child's choices?

Ask them why they chose each thing. Use the signs of life: does it grow, need food or energy and respond to the world around it? If they are unsure, look at real examples or books together.

What if my child gets some choices wrong?

That is normal and useful. Ask them what made them choose that thing, then go through the signs of life together. Wrong ideas are often sensible guesses, such as thinking that anything that moves is alive.

Can I use it in a classroom?

Yes. Use it as a starter, a quick check of what pupils already know, or a plenary. Pairs can compare choices and explain them to each other. It needs only a pencil, and black and white printing works well.

Preview the full PDF

Made by Jaques of London, making games for families since 1795. A printable supports classroom learning and does not replace a teacher.

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