What Makes Something Alive?
Have you ever wondered what makes a cat different from a rock? Or why a tree is alive but a chair (made from wood) is not? All living things — from tiny bacteria to enormous blue whales — share seven special characteristics.
Scientists use the acronym MRS GREN to remember them:
🎯 Your Goal
Pick an animal that interests you and your group. Research how that animal shows each of the 7 MRS GREN characteristics. Then create a Google Slides presentation to share what you've learned!
Click on each characteristic to see what questions you should try to answer in your research.
📋 What You Need To Do
💡 Tips for a Great Presentation
Use these websites to research your animal. Click on a link to open it in a new tab. Remember to write down which websites you use for your bibliography!
📖 How to Write a Bibliography
On your last slide, list the websites you used. For each one, write:
Example:
National Geographic Kids. "Red Fox." https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/facts/red-fox. Visited 2 March 2026.
This is how your presentation will be marked. Each section is scored from 1 to 4, where 4 is excellent. Try to get the highest score you can!