KS3 Classification PPT with starter and plenary options

This PowerPoint works through the levels of classification for KS3 science lessons, using flowering plants as a visual guide.

This can be used as a introductory lesson to a unit on the lifecycle of plants, to build excitement about a topic which many students struggle to connect to.
It can alternatively form part of a unit on evolution or ecosystems, wherever your school has chosen to include classification and variation in the KS3 programme of study.

This is an interactive lesson which requires teacher talk and questioning. Notes on each slide give examples of questions which can be asked of the class to get them thinking and elicit thoughtful answers.

The lesson comes with a starter, think-pair-share tasks, a link to an online quiz and ideas for plenaries.

The main part of the lesson can be adapted to a more active group activity, where students move to different parts of the room based on which flower they think will last until the end of the activity (see slides).

The material covers the following specification points from the UK KS3 science curriculum:

• differences between species
• the importance of maintaining biodiversity and the use of gene banks to preserve hereditary material