Year 2 Animals Including Humans – Basic Needs Lesson 1: What Are Needs and Wants? Lesson Pack
This Year 2 Animals Including Humans – Basic Needs lesson pack introduces pupils to the difference between needs and wants as part of the Animals Including Humans – Basic Needs unit. Pupils learn that animals, including humans, need water, food and air for survival, and begin to understand why some things are essential while others are not.
Through structured discussion and practical activities, pupils sort examples into needs and wants, explore common misconceptions and apply their understanding to survival scenarios. This lesson builds secure foundations for later learning about water, food and survival in Year 2 science.
What’s included in this lesson pack?
- Step-by-step lesson plan with clear teaching guidance
- Interactive Year 2 science PowerPoint slides for whole-class input
- Differentiated needs and wants worksheet with star-level challenge
- Needs and wants sorting cards and poster template
- Assessment questions and key vocabulary support
What pupils will learn
- What animals, including humans, need for survival
- The difference between a need and a want
- That water, food and air are essential basic needs
- How to explain their thinking using scientific vocabulary such as survival, warmth and oxygen
Working scientifically in KS1
Pupils ask and answer simple questions, justify their ideas through discussion and use evidence to decide whether something is a need or a want. They apply their understanding to a desert island survival scenario and record their thinking using structured, differentiated tasks.
