Characteristics of Life
GRACE
Georgia Performance
Standard
SB1a:
Students will know that
all living things share
the same
characteristics of life.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What are the
characteristics
of life for all
living things?
VOCABULARY
Characteristic
Biology
Organism
Reproduction
Photosynthesis
Metabolism
Heterotroph
Autotroph
Nourishment
Unicellular
Multicellular
Adjustment
Growth
Development
Cell
Organism
Tissue
Organ
Homeostasis
Adaptation
BIOLOGY =

STUDY OF
LIFE OR
LIVING
ORGANISMS.
A BIOLOGIST IS…
A person that studies,
 Plants=botanist
 Animals=zoologist
 Anatomy &Physiology
=Physiologist
All life follows an organized
pattern.
From Smallest to largest.
Atoms
 Molecules
 Organelles
 Cells
 Tissues
 Organ
 Organ System
 Organism

Memory Pneumonic:
All my odd cousins tried opening
orange-striped oranges.
Levels of Structural Organization
Figure 1.1
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings
Slide 1.3
All Living organisms display
GRACE
G= GROWTH &
DEVELOPMENT
 R=REPRODUCTION
 A=ADAPTATION and
ADJUSTMENT
 C=CELLS
 E=ENERGY
*these letters represent the 5
characteristics of life

GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT

GROWTH=CHANGE IN SIZE

Living things become larger and more
complicated as they grow.

Example: A baby grows in size
GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT
DEVELOPMENT =CHANGE IN FORM

EXAMPLE: A CATERPILLAR
BECOMES A BUTTERFLY
REPRODUCTION

All living things produce young.
EXAMPLE: Humans make
babies, cats produce kittens and
pigeons lay eggs. Plants also
reproduce by making seeds.
REPRODUCTION (cont)
Reproduction may be asexual or sexual
 Sexual reproduction: Two organisms
combine genetic information; the new
organism will have some characteristics
from the mother, and some from father. It
may look like either of them, or it may not.
 Asexual reproduction: One organism
splits into two organisms in order to create
another of the same species; the new
organism is an exact copy of the first.
What do you think?
Is there a benefit to
sexual reproduction over
asexual reproduction?
Explain.
ADAPTATION/ADJUSTMENT
TO ENVIRONMENT


Adaptation: A TRAIT RESULTING
FROM EVOLUTION THAT ALLOWS
A SPECIES THE ABILITY TO
SURVIVE BETTER. Evolution is the
process by which a species changes
over time.
Adjustment:
INDIVIDUALRESPONSE TO
STIMULUS (homeostasis):
 TEMP


AIR
PREDATORS
CELLS

ALL LIVING THINGS ARE
COMPOSED OF ONE OR MORE
CELLS

A CELL IS THE SMALLEST UNIT OF A
LIVING ORGANISM.
ONE CELL=UNICELLULAR
MANY CELLS= MULTICELLULAR


ENERGY
All living things require energy and
food.
 Energy is THE ABILITY TO DO
WORK.

METABOLISM, DIGESTION, ECT.
Heterotrophs (animals and humans) must
ingest food for this purpose.
Hetero= different
troph = nourishment
Autotrophs (plants) make their own food
auto= self
troph =nourishment
Autotrophs (plants) use energy
from the sun for photosynthesis,
to make their own ‘food’
(glucose).
Photosynthesis
Photo=light synthesis= to make
All living things must show
G
R
A
C
E

Homework
 Re-write
your notes
into 20 Questions
and Answers.
 The format uses
what, why, when,
where, or how
questions with a
correct response.
Let’s Practice
The notes read:
A biologist is a person who
studies plants and animals.
Your Q/A re-write should read….