LIVING THINGS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENT Notes, Quizzes & Revision
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LIVING THINGS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENT
1. What are living things?
Living things are organisms that grow, move, react to the environment, use energy, reproduce and die. A simple mnemonic is MRS GREN:
- Movement — they can move or show movement (e.g., a creeping plant, animals walking).
- Respiration — they release energy from food.
- Sensitivity — they respond to light, touch, temperature.
- Growth — they get bigger or change form.
- Reproduction — they make more of their kind.
- Excretion — they remove waste.
- Nutrition — they take in food and energy.
2. Main groups of living things (simple view)
Trees, grasses, shrubs and crops (maize, tea, coffee). They make their own food by photosynthesis and are producers in the environment.
Wild animals (elephant, giraffe, lion), livestock (cattle, goats), insects (pollinators, pests). Animals are consumers.
Tiny organisms such as bacteria and fungi. Some help (decomposers, yoghurt making), some cause disease.
3. Habitats and environments in Kenya
A habitat is the place where a living thing lives. Kenya has many habitats; examples and typical organisms:
- Savannah / Grassland — Maasai Mara, Amboseli. Animals: zebra, wildebeest, lion, acacia trees.
- Forest — Kakamega, Mt. Kenya forests. Animals: monkeys, birds, many plants and insects.
- Wetlands and Lakes — Lake Victoria, wetlands at river mouths. Animals: fish, hippos, water birds.
- Coastal / Mangrove and Coral Reefs — Indian Ocean coast. Organisms: mangrove trees, crabs, fish, corals.
- Arid and Semi-arid Areas — Northern Kenya. Organisms: camels, acacia, succulents.
- Urban environments — cities like Nairobi. Organisms: people, rats, pigeons, planted trees, roadside weeds.
4. How living things interact
Living things interact in many ways: feeding relationships, competition, and cooperation. Energy moves through an ecosystem by food chains and food webs.
5. Adaptations — how organisms survive
Adaptations are features that help an organism survive in its habitat. Examples found in Kenya:
- Giraffe: long neck to reach leaves on tall acacia trees.
- Elephant: large ears for cooling, trunk for reaching food and water.
- Mangrove trees: special roots (pneumatophores) that breathe in muddy water.
- Camel (northern Kenya): stores fat in hump, wide feet for sand.
- Acacia trees: thorns to deter browsers and deep roots to find water.
6. Human effects and conservation
People change environments. Some changes harm ecosystems, but humans also act to protect them.
Deforestation, poaching, pollution (plastic in rivers and coast), overfishing, land degradation and climate change.
National parks and reserves, community conservancies, reforestation, mangrove planting, protected fishing zones, education and sustainable farming.
7. Key terms (short glossary)
- Habitat — the natural home of an organism.
- Ecosystem — all living things and their environment in one place.
- Producer — makes its own food (plants).
- Consumer — eats other organisms (herbivore, carnivore, omnivore).
- Decomposer — breaks down dead material (fungi, bacteria).
8. Practice questions and simple activities
- List three living things you can find near your home and name their habitat.
- Draw a simple food chain with a plant, an insect, and a bird (label producer, consumer).
- Give two examples of adaptations of animals or plants in Kenya and explain how they help survival.
- Find a local area (school garden, roadside, small wetland) and record 3 living things and 2 non-living things you observe.
- Discuss: How can your family help protect local wildlife and water sources?
9. Short summary
Living things depend on their environment and on each other. In Kenya we see many habitats with plants and animals adapted to each place. People can damage these environments but also protect them through conservation actions and sustainable behaviour.