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All living organisms are classified into groups based on very basic, shared characteristics (appearance, reproduction, mobility, functionality etc.). The classification of living things includes 7 levels:

domain kingdom phylum class order family genus species

Wildlife – the wonder of living organisms

Skills / Talking Think about the following questions and try to answer them.

Many animal and plant species are becoming endangered or extinct… Why? What do people do to protect (preserve) wildlife?

Vocabulary: TAXONOMY Read the text below and think about the Czech equivalents for classification terms.

Study the scheme below (note: the scheme is not a full scientific taxonomic diagram) and fill in the empty boxes with appropriate terms, choose from the words below. Then think about the Czech equivalents for the terms in the scheme.

amphibians invertebrates fish plantae mammals prokaryotes reptiles birds

Skills / Classification: Describe the taxonomic system above, use expressions below.

Living organisms are divided into/classified according to… There are two groups of… Vertebrates include…

Describe suitable examples, use expressions below.

Spiders are… Insects belong to… Animals are one of the kingdoms which belong to…

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Living organisms

Eukaryotes

Protists Fungi Animalia

Vertebrates

bacteria archeae

blue-green algae (cyanobacteria)

algae protozoa…

fungi lichens

even-toed / odd-toed ungulates cats, dogs, bears

rodents primates

cetaceans…

nonvascular plants vascular plants

mosses ferns

conifers broad-leaved trees flowering plants…

sponges worms

arthropods mollusks

crustaceansinsects…

s

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A plant is a living organism. It contains different parts; every part has a particular purpose, or specialized function. If one part of the plant is not functioning properly the whole plant will suffer. But we can cut flowers off the plant or prune the roots. Such damage is only temporary and so the plant will continue to grow. The basic parts of a plant are the root system, which is below the ground, and the shoot system, which is above the ground. The root of a plant has two main functions. It absorbs water and minerals from the soil through the root hairs. The root hairs are single cells near the tip of each root. The other main function of the root is to hold the plant in position in the soil. The shoot system above the ground consists of the stem, the leaves, flowers and fruit. One of the functions of the stem is to support the plant. Another important function is that the stem transports water and minerals from the roots to the leaves and flowers. Organic materials such as sugar glucose travel from the leaves down the stem to the roots. The leaves grow out of the side of the stem; their main job is to make food for the plant by photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is a process which converts light energy into chemical energy, helps plants synthesize sugars from carbon dioxide and water, and release oxygen as a byproduct. The flower contains the reproductive organs of the plant. The stamens produce the male sex cells, which are in the pollen grains. The stigma produces female sex cells and later it receives pollen, which leads to fertilization (this process is called pollination, usually done by insects or wind). The fruit holds seeds and protects them while they are developing. When seeds fall from the fruit, they first germinate (during germination seeds get bigger and shoots grow on them) and then roots and leaves grow from the seeds. Later the plant produces buds and flowers.

based on Wikipedia and other Internet resources

Think about the following question and try to answer it, use the clues words below.

What are the differences between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells? Clues: nucleus, DNA, size, organism, mitochondria, chloroplasts, unicellular / multicellular…

Skills / Reading: THE PARTS OF A PLANT AND THEIR FUNCTION Starter: Why are plants very important for all life on the Earth? How do plants get energy?

Vocabulary from the text Label the picture of a plant and pictures on the right; look for the necessary terms in the text.

©Wikipedia, Kelvinsong, 2013

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Summary and feedback

How are living organisms classified? Describe parts of a plant body, their function and the process of photosynthesis.

Vocabulary to remember

Understanding the text Describe the function of each part of a plant body and the process of photosynthesis, use the words below.

©Wikipedia, Wattcle, 2016 / Nefronus, 2019

Grammar from the text: NOUNS /PLURALS / COUNTABILITY Are the following nouns from the text countable (C) or uncountable (UN)? Do they have singular and plural forms? If yes, what are they? What is the plural form of the nouns in the boxes?

organism / part / damage / ground / water / function / bacteria / photosynthesis / soil / leaves

Adjectives: hold Nouns: flower, fruit prokaryotes female join algae fungi reptiles male pollinate amphibians germination rodents reproductive produce / form bacteria (in)vertebrates root (hairs) protect birds insect seed

Verbs: react cell (sex cells) leaves shoots / buds

absorb release eukaryotes mammals stamens bring support ferns / mosses petal stem contain take place fertilization pollen stigma germinate transport fish pollination worms

NOUNS:

carbon dioxide

chlorophyll

inorganic matter

nutrients

organic matter

oxygen

pollen

reproductive organs

seeds

(the) soil

sugar glucose

sunlight energy

water

VERBS:

absorb

bring

contain

form

hold

join

produce

protect

react

release

support

take place

transport

church –

tomato –

volcano –

country –

calf –

wolf –

half –

species –

series –

fungus –

nucleus –

datum –

bacterium –

alga –

analysis, axis –

sheep –

fish –

deer -

mouse –

goose –

foot –

tooth –

woman –

man –

child –

person –

larva –