Nature Diversity Slides
Our Diverse World
Exploring Living & Non-Living Things
Living
Non-Living
Classroom Color Hunt!
"How many different colors can you see in our classroom right now?"
When we have a lot of different things together, we call it DIVERSITY!
Watch & Wonder
Embedded media
Task: Look for your favorite color in nature!
How do we know if something is alive?
LIVING
- They Grow
- They Need Food & Water
- They Need Air
NON-LIVING
- No Food Needed
- No Growing
- No Breathing
Nature Diversity Collage
✂️
1. CUT
Find 3 living and 3 non-living things in magazines.
🧴
2. GLUE
Place them on your Diversity Map.
👀
3. SHOW
Share your work during our Gallery Walk!
Gallery Walk
Walk quietly around the room.
In each collage, find:
ONE living thing and
ONE non-living thing.
Nature Detectives Teacher Guide
Nature Detectives
Lesson Facilitation Guide • K-2nd Grade
Duration: 50 Minutes
Learning Objective
Students will define diversity in the natural world and successfully classify objects as living or non-living by creating a representative collage.
Materials
- Nature magazines
- Scissors & Glue sticks
- Construction paper
- Worksheet template
- Instructional Slides
Lesson Procedure
05 MIN
Warm-Up: Classroom Color Hunt
Ask students to scan the room for as many colors as possible. Discuss how many different colors make the room exciting. Introduce the word Diversity: "Just like our room has a variety of colors, nature has a variety of living and non-living things."
10 MIN
Video: Exploring Diversity
Watch "Exploring Diversity in Our World." Task students to spot their favorite color in nature during the viewing.
Facilitation Pause Points
0:59 (Microorganisms): "Did you know things too small to see are alive? What tools do scientists use?"
1:12 (Wind/Air): "Air is non-living. How is it helping the living people in this scene?"
2:03 (Classification): "Before we see the list, what do YOU think makes something alive?"
3:35 (Properties): "Look around—which objects here would sink or float?"
25 MIN
Activity: Diversity Collage
Distribute magazines and the "Diversity Collage" worksheet.
- Students find and cut 3 living things (plants, animals).
- Students find and cut 3 non-living natural things (rocks, water, clouds).
- Glue into the appropriate sections on the worksheet.
Pro-Tip: If nature magazines are unavailable, use printed image sheets or allow students to draw.
10 MIN
Gallery Walk & Wrap-Up
Display collages on desks. Class walks around with hands behind backs. Task: Whisper-identify one living and one non-living thing on each peer's paper. Finish by asking: "Why is it important that we have both living and non-living things?"
Teacher Notes & Differentiation
Support (K/1st):
Pre-cut some images for students who struggle with scissor skills. Focus on obvious items like "Cat" (Living) vs "Rock" (Non-living).
Challenge (2nd):
Ask students to label their items with the specific "Property" (flexibility, strength) or "Material" (wood, metal) as seen in the video.
Nature Vocabulary Cards
Diversity
The variety of many different things in the world.
Nature Vocabulary
Microorganisms
Living things that are too small to be seen with just our eyes.
Nature Vocabulary
Non-Living
Things that do not grow, breathe, or need food and water.
Nature Vocabulary
Classification
Sorting things into groups based on how they are the same.
Nature Vocabulary
Properties
The way a material feels or acts, like being strong or flexible.
Nature Vocabulary
