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Chapter 10: Living Creatures: Exploring their CharacteristicsClass 6 Science — summary, notes, extra questions & NCERT solutions
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Which of the following is a characteristic of all living beings?
Summary
This chapter helps students tell living beings apart from non-living things by identifying the characteristics that all living beings share. Living beings show movement — not only animals, but also plants, which open their flowers, trap insects (as in Drosera), and twine around supports even though they do not move from place to place. Living beings grow, need food (nutrition) for growth, and respire (breathe), with plants taking air in and out through tiny pores called stomata on their leaves. They excrete, removing waste such as sweat and urine, while plants release excess water and minerals as droplets. They respond to stimuli — anything that prompts a response — as when the touch-me-not plant folds its leaves or amla leaves fold after sunset. They reproduce, producing new ones of their own kind to continue life, and eventually they die. The absence of any of these features marks something as non-living. The chapter then examines germination, showing through an experiment that a seed needs the right amount of water and air, but generally not light, to germinate; water softens the seed coat so the embryo can grow, and air in the spaces between soil particles is essential. Studying growth and movement in plants reveals that shoots grow upward and bend towards light, while roots grow downward regardless of how the plant is placed. The chapter traces the life cycle of a plant from seed to germination, growth, flowering, fruiting, new seeds, and finally death. It also describes the life cycle of a mosquito (egg, larva, pupa, adult) and of a frog (egg/spawn, tadpole, froglet, adult), highlighting the striking changes in body shape and even habitat during these stages, and the importance of reproduction for the continuity of each kind.
Living versus non-livingCharacteristics of living beingsGermination of seedsGrowth and movement in plantsLife cycles of plants, mosquitoes, and frogs
Key terms
Characteristics of living beings
The shared features of all living things: movement, growth, need for food, respiration, excretion, response to stimuli, reproduction, and death.
Stimulus
Anything or any event that prompts a living being to respond, such as touching a hot object or a thorn.
Germination
The process by which a seed develops into a sprout or seedling, requiring the right amount of water and air.
Excretion
The removal of waste products from the body, such as sweat and urine in animals, and excess water and minerals in plants.
Life cycle
The series of stages a living being passes through, from its origin to producing the next generation and finally death.
Reproduction
The process of producing new ones of one's own kind, necessary for the continuity of life.
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The shared features of all living things: movement, growth, need for food, respiration, excretion, response to stimuli, reproduction, and death.
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