Grouping Living Things · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Many Ways to Group Living Things

Science · Ecosystems & Habitats · ages 8-9
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. An owl has feathers, a rabbit has fur, and a fish has scales. If you sort by body covering, how many groups do you get?

    • 1
    • 2
    • 3

  2. Which of these is a real way to group living things?

    • By what they eat
    • By how many letters are in their name
    • By what day it is

  3. A living thing can only ever belong to one single group.

    Circle one:   True   False

  4. Priya sorts a frog and a hawk by diet, and they land in the same group. What do these two animals share?

    • They both eat other animals
    • They both have feathers
    • They both live in water

  5. An owl eats mice and a fish eats smaller water creatures. A rabbit eats grass. If you sort by diet, which two group together?

    • Owl and rabbit
    • Owl and fish
    • Rabbit and fish

  6. You sort the same three animals by habitat instead of diet. Now the owl groups with the rabbit as land animals. What does this show?

    • The owl moved to a new home
    • The groups change when the feature changes
    • The rabbit is not really an animal

  7. A class sorts 7 animals by body covering: 4 have fur, and the rest have feathers. How many have feathers?

    Answer: ______________

  8. Leo groups a bat with birds and says 'because it flies.' Priya groups the same bat with rabbits and says 'because it has fur.' Are both groupings okay?

    • Yes, each named a clear feature to explain the group
    • No, only Leo is right because bats fly
    • No, a bat cannot be grouped at all
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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Many Ways to Group Living Things W1-mt_AylKwhbDWM-s1

  1. 3 · Each animal has a different body covering, so each one ends up in its own group.
  2. By what they eat · Diet, habitat, and body covering are all observable features you can sort by.
  3. False · The same animal can belong to many different groups, depending on which feature you pick.
  4. They both eat other animals · Frogs eat flies and hawks eat mice. Both eat other animals, so they land together as meat-eaters.
  5. Owl and fish · The owl and the fish both eat other animals, so they group together as meat-eaters.
  6. The groups change when the feature changes · Changing the feature you sort by changes which group each animal lands in.
  7. 3 · 7 animals total, minus the 4 with fur, leaves 3 with feathers.
  8. Yes, each named a clear feature to explain the group · Both groupings work because each child explained the feature behind it. A bat can be a flying animal or a fur-covered animal, depending on what you choose to sort by.
Worksheet · LightMySky