Science

Diversity

Primary 3 2008
Updated on 29 Aug 2008 Chapter 1 to 4 Completed

Chapter 1 Living & Non-Living Things

Groups of Living Things; - Animals - Plants - Fungi - Bacteria Characteristics of Living Things; - Need air, food and water - Respond to changes - Grow - Reproduce - Die

Chapter 2 Animals
Animals are grouped into; Mammals Birds Fish Insects Characteristics of; 1. Mammals - Covered with hair or fur - Feed their young with milk - Give birth to young alive - Warm blooded vertebrates - Only 2 types of mammals lay eggs : Platypus and Spiny Anteater - Examples of mammals : Humans, Cats, Dogs, Bats, Whales, Dolphins, Seals.

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Birds Covered with feathers Have a beak, 2 wings and 2 legs All birds lay eggs Warm-blooded vertebrates Most flightless birds are too heavy to fly examples : Penguins, Emus and Ostriches. 3. Fish - Covered with scales - Live in water - Have tail and fins (tail helps to move in water, fins help to stay upright and change direction) - Have gills - Most lay eggs but some give birth to young alive - Cold-blooded vertebrates 4. Insects Have 3 body parts : head, thorax and abdomen Have 6 jointed legs Have hard outer covering Have 2 antennas Reproduce by laying eggs Cold-blooded invertebrates Insects may have 1 or 2 pairs of wings

Animals - Animals cannot make their own food (they do not have chlorophyll). - Animals can be classified into Vertebrates and Invertebrates. - Animals can also be classified into Warm-blooded and Cold-blooded. Vertebrates - Have backbones Examples : Mammals, birds, fishes, amphibians and reptiles Invertebrates - Do not have backbones Examples : Insects and Crustaceans (prawns or shrimps, crabs, lobsters, crayfish, etc) Warm-blooded Animals - A warm-blooded animal is one that can maintain its body temperature constant regardless of the surrounding environment temperature. Cold-blooded Animals - Cold-blooded means that the body temperature changes according to the surroundings.

Herbivores are animals that eat plants only. Carnivores are animals that eat only other animals. Omnivores are animals that eat both plants and aminals.

Chapter 3 Plants
Plants can be classified into ; - Non-flowering - Flowering Examples of Non-flowering plants; - Tree fern - Sword fern - Birds nest fern - Moss - Pine - Water Spangle Examples of Flowering plants; - Bougainvillea, Coconut palms, Ixora, - Orchid, water lilies, Papaya, - Sunflower, Rice, Rain tree, - Jasmine, Angsana tree, Rose - Mimosa Flowering plants bear flowers, fruits and seeds when they mature. All plants contain chlorophyll and can make their own food. All plants have roots, stems and leaves. Moses - Do not produce seeds. Reproduce by tiny spores. Live in damp and shady area. Ferns - Have large leaves that help them to live in places with little sunlight. - Ferns reproduced by spores in the undersides of leaves. Plants grow in water called Water Plants. Plants grow on land called Land Plants. Water plants may be classified as; - Floating - Partially Submerged - Fully Submerged

Floating Duckweed, Water lettuce Partially Submerged Water Lily, Arrowhead Fully Submerged Hydrilla, Fanwort, Cabomba Poisonous plants Dumb Cane, Iantana Non-Poisonous plants Sweet Potato Plants Plants come in different shapes; Round-shaped, Cone-shaped, Fan-shaped, Umbrella-shaped. Leaves come in different shapes, with different edge4s and textures. Leaves differ in; - color (eg. Red, green) - Texture (eg. Smooth/rough, hariy/waxy) - Veins (eg. Parallel, network) - Edges (eg. Smooth/entire, toothed, lobed) - Shapes (eg. Palm, round, lance, oval, heart, butterfly) Formation of leaves some plants have simple leaf while some have compound leaf. Compound leaves are usually made of leaflets attached closely to each other. Flowers can grow singly or in clusters. Edges of Leaves; 1. Tooth-edged Balsam 2. Lobe-edged Papaya 3. Entire-edged Money Plant

Chapter 4 Fungi & Bacteria

Fungi; - Feed on dead plants and animals - Reproduce from spores - Do not make their own food as they have no chlorophyll - Fungi need water to grow and digest their food Examples of Fungi Mushroom, Yeast, Mould and Bread Fungus Bacteria; - They are micro-organisms - They cause things to decay, they are called decomposers A bacterium is made up of only one cell.