Comparing Organisms

Comparing Organisms Worksheet (Grade 6 Science, TEKS 6.13B)

Bring all three TEKS 6.13B pairs together. This one-page sheet shows eight organism profiles, from an E. coli bacterium and a cyanobacterium to kelp and a deer. Students describe each organism as prokaryotic or eukaryotic, unicellular or multicellular, and autotroph or heterotroph.

What's Inside

• A Big Question box: "How do scientists compare organisms?"
• The three pairs of characteristics with a worked example
• Eight illustrated organism profiles
• Activity 1: Students circle P or E, U or M, and A or H for four organisms
• Activity 2: Three "Which organism am I?" riddles
• A visual answer key with answers marked in red

How Teachers Use It

Use it to wrap up TEKS 6.13B or as a review before a quiz. The sheet takes about 10 minutes and prints clearly in black and white.

This worksheet is part of the Reading in Science series for grade 6. It supports TEKS 6.13B: identify and compare the basic characteristics of organisms, including prokaryotic and eukaryotic, unicellular and multicellular, and autotrophic and heterotrophic. It is one of eleven connected TEKS 6.13 sheets: cell theory (6.13A), the basic characteristics of organisms (6.13B), and variation and survival (6.13C), plus a vocabulary review.

Why It Works

Each sheet opens with a Big Question, teaches the key terms in plain words with simple black-and-white doodles, and then asks students to use only what the page taught. Activities stay at the circle, sort, match, and fill-in level, so students can finish in about 10 minutes, and the visual answer key lets teachers check work fast.