Resources from Living Things – JSS3 Basic Science Lesson Note (Second Term)

Resources from living things are useful materials that people obtain from plants and animals.

Behavioural objectives

1. Name the four major groups of plant resources.
2. Give examples of cash crops and food crops.
3. State what dyes and drugs are and where they come from.
4. List resources obtained from animals, including hide, skin and livestock products.
5. State what a dairy is and name some dairy products.

What are resources from living things?

Resources from living things come from two sources: plants and animals.

• Plant resources: cash crops, food crops, dyes, textile crops and drugs.
• Animal resources: hide, skin, meat, milk, eggs, feathers and droppings.

Why are plants grown?

Plants are grown in gardens and on farms for three main reasons.

• Food: crops feed people and animals.
• Commercial purposes: crops are sold to earn money.
• Aesthetic value: flowers and ornamental plants make homes and gardens beautiful.

What are the groups of plant resources?

There are four major groups of plant resources: cash crops, food crops, dyes and textile crops, and drug or medicinal crops.

What are cash crops?

Cash crops are crops grown mainly for sale to make money.

• Quantity: they are produced in large quantities.
• Market: they are used within the country and also exported.
• Foreign exchange: export of these crops earns foreign money for the country.

Examples of cash crops by type:

• Wood crops: trees cut for timber, such as iroko, mahogany and ebony.
• Fibre crops: crops that give fibre, such as cotton.
• Oil crops: crops that give oil, such as groundnut and oil palm.
• Other crops: sugar cane, tobacco, cocoa and rubber.

What are food crops?

Food crops are plants grown mainly as a source of food.

• They supply vitamins, carbohydrates, protein, oil and other nutrients.
• The body needs these nutrients for growth and development.

Types of food crops:

• Vegetables: leafy plants rich in vitamins, such as pumpkin, lettuce and bitter leaf.
• Root tubers: underground storage organs rich in carbohydrates, such as yam and cassava.
• Fruits: sweet plant products rich in vitamins, such as guava, mango and orange.
• Legumes: plants with seeds in pods, rich in protein, such as beans.
• Grains: cereal seeds rich in carbohydrates, such as rice, maize and millet.
• Underground crops: crops that grow below the soil, such as carrot and onion.
• Oil plants: plants that give edible oil, such as groundnut, oil palm and olive.

What is the difference between cash crops and food crops?

• Cash crops: grown mainly to be sold for money.
• Food crops: grown mainly to be eaten.

• Note: some crops, such as groundnut and oil palm, can serve as both.

What are dyes and textile crops?

Dyes are coloured liquid substances from plant extracts, used to change the colour of materials.

• Uses of dyes: colouring clothing materials, hair and houses.
• Source: they are extracted naturally from the flowers and leaves of plants.

Textile crops are plants whose fibres are used to make cloth, rope and woven goods.

• Cotton: used by textile industries for making clothes.
• Flax, guinea-hemp, sisal and jute: fibre plants used in rope production.
• Palm leaves and fronds: used to make hats, bags and baskets.

What are drug or medicinal crops?

Drugs are chemical substances from plant extracts, used as medicine to prevent or cure diseases.

• Parts used: stems, roots and leaves of plants.
• Cinchona: its bark gives quinine, used against malaria.
• Garlic: used as a medicinal plant.
• Warning: drugs can alter behaviour when they are abused.

What are resources from animals?

Animal resources are materials that people obtain from animals for food, clothing and farming.

• Hide and skin: used in the leather industry and as food.
• Livestock: animals reared for meat, milk, feathers and droppings.
• Dairy products: milk and foods made from milk.

What are hide and skin?

Hide is the skin of large animals, such as camels, buffalo and cattle.

• Sale: hide can be sold and bought.
• Leather industry: hide is made into shoes, bags, purses, belts and garments.
• Skin of small animals: the skin of goats and rabbits is edible.

What is livestock?

Livestock are birds and mammals reared by farmers for food or for making money.

• Examples: goats, sheep, cows, pigs and poultry birds.

Livestock provide the following:

1. Meat and milk for food.
2. Feathers of poultry birds, such as chickens and turkeys, used for decoration.
3. Droppings, used as manure in farms and gardens.
4. Feathers, which can also be used to make pillows.

What is a dairy?

A dairy is a place where milk is kept and processed into milk products.

• Sources of milk: cows, goats and camels.
• Nutrient: milk is rich in protein.
• Dairy products: cheese, butter and yogurt.
• Use: dairy products are eaten at home and exported.

Evaluation

1. What are cash crops? Give three examples.
2. What are dyes, and from which parts of plants are they extracted?
3. Name two uses of the droppings and feathers of livestock.
4. What is a dairy? Name three dairy products.
5. Name the four major groups of plant resources.

Assignment

Answer all the questions below in your notebook.

1. Which of the following is not a livestock?
   • A. goat
   • B. lion
   • C. sheep
   • D. pig
2. The major animal resources used in the leather industries are:
   • A. hide and skin
   • B. skin and legs
   • C. hide and mat
   • D. camel and skin
3. Dairy products are major ingredients for the production of:
   • A. yam, cotton and butter
   • B. cassava, timber and cheese
   • C. yogurt, butter and rice
   • D. butter, cheese and yogurt
4. Which of the following is not a product of living things?
   • A. beans
   • B. stone
   • C. melon
   • D. meat
5. Which of the following is not a cash crop?
   • A. iroko tree
   • B. mahogany
   • C. vegetables
   • D. oil palm
6. (a) State three uses of animals.
   (b) State the four major groups of plant resources.