Living Things in the Curriculum

Children’s experiences with living and non-living things begin very early. The primary curriculum seeks to get children actively engaged in exploring their surroundings and discover the various relationships that exist between the living and non-living and also the interdependence between living things and themselves.

The study of living things in primary classes is for creating opportunities where children can explore the world of living things – animals and plants and their interdependence.

Primary school provides the first opportunity for students to begin a systematic study of themselves and their environment. It is here that they begin to see relationships based on observations, draw inferences from observations and develop the ability to process information.

Students can easily observe different animals and plants to learn about their diversities, characteristics, life cycles and growth patterns and their influence on other things in the environment. They can also classify living things into various groups and discover similarities within groups and differences among groups. These early years can be very useful in opening out the fascinating world of animals and plants to prompt a life-long engagement with them.

Acquiring a concern for all living things and learning to protect them is a desirable human trait.

Creating opportunities to develop a deep interest in the animal and plant life, together with developing a healthy concern for their protection is another focus of the curriculum.