5 th Grade Life Science Vocabulary
2a. Students know many multicellular organisms
have specialized structures to support the
transport of materials.
1. Cell: Basic structure of
all living things
2. Blood circulation: The movement of blood throughout the body
3. Digestion: The process in which foods are broken down into simple
forms that the body can use
4. Respiration: The process of using oxygen to release energy from
food. Animals and plants release carbon dioxide and water as waste
products of cell respiration. In plants, it is the opposite of
photosynthesis.
5. Waste disposal: The process of getting rid of unwanted by-products
which have been left over after a particular process, such as
digestion
6. Multicellular organisms: Living things having many cells, the human
body is an example
2b. Students know how blood circulates through the
heart chambers, lungs, and body and how carbon
dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2) are exchanged in the
lungs and tissues.
1. Blood: A tissue made up of a
liquid and several types of
cells which carries materials
to and from the body’s cells.
The red cells carry oxygen,
white blood cells fight
infection and the liquid
plasma carry food.
2. Chamber: An enclosed space
or room within the heart
3. Lungs: Two spongy organs in
the upper torso that expand
when they fill with air
4. Carbon dioxide: A colorless,
odorless gas which is
breathed out (or exhaled)
from the lungs
5. Cardiovascular system: A variety of organs which move blood through
the body made up of the heart, the blood vessels, and blood.
Oxygen-rich blood is pumped by the heart away from the heart and
lungs into the arteries, which carries it to the various tissues of the
body. The veins carry oxygen-poor blood back to the heart and
lungs.
6. Circulatory system: The
transport system which carries
oxygen and nutrients to all cells
and then removes carbon dioxide
and other wastes
7. Exchange of gas: Happens in
the lungs where oxygen in
brought into the body and
carbon dioxide is released back
into the air
8. Inhale: To breathe in
9. Exhale: To breathe out
2c. Students know the sequential steps of digestion
and the roles of teeth and the mouth, esophagus,
stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and colon in
the function of the digestive system.
1. Digestion: The
process by which
food taken into the
body is broken down
into a form the
body cells can use.
Digestion begins
when food enters
the mouths and
ends when waste
leaves the body.
2. Teeth: Hard, boney
parts in the mouth
which physically
breakdown food into
smaller pieces
through biting and chewing prior to being swallowed.
3. Mouth: An opening in the body through which food enters the body
4. Saliva: The watery liquid in the mouth that is made
the tongue and inside the jaw. Saliva moistens food
which help begin the process of chemical breakdown
people even think about food, saliva is released into
by glands under
and has enzymes
of food. When
the mouth.
5. Esophagus: The muscular tube that connects the mouth to the
stomach. After food is swallowed, it travels through the esophagus to
the stomach
6. Stomach: The muscular organ that stores food and helps digest it.
The stomach squeezes and churns food into a soupy liquid.
7. Small intestine: A long coiled organ where most digestion takes place.
Food leaves the stomach and enters the small intestine.
8. Large intestine: The organ that absorbs water and salts from
undigested material and absorbs water from wastes and returns it
through its walls to the bloodstream. Food enters the large intestine
from the small intestine and leaves by the colon.
9. Colon: The longest part of the large intestine, in which solid waste
collects before leaving the body as feces
2d. Students know the role of the kidney in removing cellular
waste from blood and converting it into urine, which is stored
in the bladder.
1. Kidneys: Two organs that clean
and filter the blood by separating
waste material in the form of
urine. The kidney’s job is to
remove water and salts from the
blood and control the amount of
water in the body.
2. Urine: A clear or yellow fluid
that is made in the kidneys and
stored in the bladder before
leaving the body as waste. The
kidneys make urine by filtering
waste products from the blood.
3. Cellular waste: Something that is left over at the smallest level. The
lungs giving off carbon dioxide is an example of cellular waste.
4. Bladder: The organ that stores urine produced by the kidneys
2e. Students know how sugar, water, and minerals
are transported in a vascular plant.
Phloem
Tubes
Xylem
Phloem
Xylem
Xylem
Phloem
1. Xylem: The woody tube tissue that carries water and minerals from
the soil up to the plant parts such as the stem, leaf, and flower
2. Phloem: The tube tissue which carries sugars and other nutrients
from the leaves through the stem and down to the root
3.
Vascular plant: Plants having tubes which carry water or sap from one
part of the plant to another
4. Transport: To carry from one place to another
2f. Students know plants use carbon dioxide (CO2)
and energy from sunlight to build molecules of sugar
and release oxygen.
1. Photosynthesis: The process by which plants, also known as producers,
make their own food by using energy from the Sun. Its formula is
energy + 6CO2 + 6H2O
C10H12O6 + 602
2. Sugar: (carbohydrate molecule): A chemically bonded compound made
from carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. It is a carbohydrate; its
chemical formula is C10H12O6.
3. Energy: The ability to cause an action, and is needed by the body to
make it work.
2g. Students know plant and animal cells break down
sugar to obtain energy, a process resulting in carbon
dioxide (CO2) and water (respiration).
1. Respiration: The process of using oxygen to release energy from food.
Animals and plants release carbon dioxide and water as waste products
of cell respiration. In plants, it is the opposite of photosynthesis.
2. Cellular Respiration: The process of using oxygen to release energy from
food.
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