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Earth and Life

Science
Quarter 2 – Module 22:

Unifying Themes in the Study of

Life

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 What I Need to Know
This module was designed and written with you in mind. It is here to help you
master the Unifying Themes of Biology. The scope of this module permits it to
be used in many different learning situations. The language used recognizes the
diverse vocabulary level of students. The lessons are arranged to follow the
standard sequence of the course. But the order in which you read them can be
changed to correspond with the textbook you are now using.

The module covers:

 Lesson 1 – Unifying Themes of Study of Life (Biology)

After going through this module, you are expected to:

1. name the unifying themes in the study of life;

2. describe the unifying themes illustrated;
3. explain the connection among living things and their interaction with the
environment;
4. give details on how these themes serve as the foundation in the study of
biology.
5. value life by taking good care of all beings, human, plants and animals.

What I Know
Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet
of paper.
1. Continuity of life is explained by ______________.
A. evolution
B. regulation
C. form and function
D. reproduction and inheritance
2. Living things are considered organisms if they possess which of the following
characteristics?
A. grow and develop
B. failure to produce offspring
C. absence of orderly structure
D. incapability of adapting to changing environment
3. Which of the following best explains why humans sweat when they feel hot?
A. ability to grow
B. ability to reproduce
C. maintain the internal environment
D. use energy

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4. Study the given picture. Which of the following DOES
NOT describe it?
A. It shows how organisms respond to its environment.
B. The organisms are growing and developing. C. There
is a transfer of energy among living organisms.
D. They are evolving.
5. Which statement does not describe the image on the
right side?
A. Plants acquire energy for them to perform its task, the
food making.
B. Plants need the abiotic factors in order to grow.
C. There is a transfer of energy from the sun to the plants.
D. They are evolving.
6. Which among the given statements describes a cell? A. Early organisms
lack cell.
B. Cell is the basic unit of life.
C. Cell is present among eukaryotic only.
D. All of the above.
7. Living organisms cannot live alone, they are interacting with the abiotic factors
for sustainability of life. Which among the organisms is considered as the
abiotic?
A. bacteria
B. plant
C. light
D. man
8. One of the characteristics possessed by living organisms is growth and
development. This happens upon acquiring energy. When creating a food
chain, in what order do we start illustrating the smallest organism having
the most energy?
A. leading to the right
B. leading to the left
C. in the middle
D. any order will do
9. A nice smell of a plant is an adaptation that ______________ A. helps the plant
to keep the nutrients inside.
B. pushes away the animals that try to eat them.
C. attracts the pollinators.
D. regulates the internal environment.

10. It was observed that the deciduous trees lose their leaves during winter season
in order to avoid freezing. This is an example of ______________.
A. a response
B. organization of life
C. function and structure

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D. unity of living systems
11. It is a unifying theme of life science that explains the improvement of lives
of all organisms through research.
A. adaptation
B. inheritance
C. energy and life
D. biology and society
12. All organisms alive today have descended from simple cellular creatures
billions of years ago. Biologists were able to identify and preserved some of
the characteristics of that earliest organisms. This is associated in what
theme?
A. Function and structure are interdependent.
B. Cell theory as a description of living systems.
C. Emergent properties arise from the organization of life.
D. Unity of living systems is explained by evolutionary conservation.
13. The orchard sprayed with the chemical yields an average of 60 kilos of
mangoes per tree, the other orchard yields an average of 40 kilos of mangoes
per tree. Based on the data, in order to have a better yield trees must
______________.
I. receive the same amount of sunlight
II. receive the same amount of water
III. increase the orchard spray
A. I only
B. II only
C. I, II
D. I, II, III
14. Many threatened or endangered species can be saved by a large ______________.

A. coal mine
B. food chain
C. wildlife hunting
D. reforestation project
15. Living organisms can be protected through fighting deforestation. Which
statement/s describe/s this?

A. Plant more trees.

B. Reduce the use of products made from wood fiber.
C. Demand forest products from sustainable sources and deforestation fee supply
chains.
D. The choices are all correct.

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 Lesson
Unifying Themes in the
1 Study of Life

Earth is the home of human beings and organisms, including animals, plants
and microorganisms. They are found in the different parts of the said planet.
The ecosystems-the biological communities- include living organisms (biotic
factors) like animals, plants, insects and bacteria (interacting to its
environment), as well as the nonliving components (abiotic factors) like the
rock, soil, water and sunlight. Nonliving things are classified as inanimate
objects that may influence, alter or impact the life of biotic factors. These
abiotic factors are essential to biotic factors in various ways.
The field of science that deals with the study of life is the Life Science/Biology.
It involves different disciplines. These disciplines are connected to one another,
through which the biologist termed as unifying themes.
This module emphasizes these unifying themes that serve as the bases of the
study of Life Science. The ten unifying themes include: emergent properties, the
cell, the heritable information, structure/function, interaction with the
environment, regulation, unity and diversity, evolution, scientific inquiry, and
the science, technology and society. More so, this module explores how
organisms interact with one another and to its environment.

What’s In
Biology is the discipline of science that deals with the study of life. This
comprises number of disciplines such as biochemistry and ecology. As a wide-
ranging and complex science, biologists designed the term “unifying themes”,
which serve as the bases for the study of life.

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 Activity 1: DAD (Decode, Arrange, Describe)
Directions: Decode the given numbers to their corresponding letters of the
alphabet, then arrange the letters to reveal the magic word related to Biology.
Lastly, describe the term revealed.

12 5 3 12
1.

27 17 17 3 5 12 7

2.

1 1 1 18 22 22 9 14 17

3.
.

1 1 1 18 22 22 9 14 17 4
4.

7 8 20 22 17 25
5.

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 Notes to the Teacher

Guide the learners on defining and relating the magic word to the
field of Biology.

What’s New

Activity 2: Name It

Directions: Name the unifying theme illustrated below. Choose your answer
from words inside the box.

biological system cell reproduction and inheritance

interaction with the environment regulation
energy and life adaptation
form and function
evolution
biology and society

1. 4.

2. 5.

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 3.

Activity 3: Match It
Directions: Match the given statements to its corresponding unifying themes.

1. Living things work as a system, at the same A. biological system

time they cannot be separated from non-living things
since they are both operating as a system.
2. Cells are the basic unit of life, which denotes that all living B. energy and life
things are composed of cells.
3. Autotrophs use light to perform the process photosynthesis, C. biology and society
on the other hand, heterotrophs consume other organisms to
obtain food.
4. Living things cannot live alone, their survival D. interaction with the
depends on how they interact with the environment. environment

5. Organisms’ structures fit with its functions. E. the cellular basis of

life
6. Traits of parents are being passed from one generation F. form and function
to the next generation.
7. Cells of the body are surrounded by a G. reproduction and
small amount of fluid, and normal cell functions Inheritance
depends on the maintenance of cell’s fluid
environment including temperature, volume, H. adaptation
and chemical content.
8. Living organisms survive depending on I. regulation /
how one will adapt to its changing environment. homeostasis
9. The diversity of life arises by change
leading to the present biodiversity that we see. J. evolution
10. The field of science is changing the lives of
all organisms through research. K. scientific inquiry

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What is It
The unifying theme connects the different subdisciplines that make biology
as a science. In addition to, the living organisms differ from nonliving
organisms in various aspects. What are these shared properties (of living
organisms) that make something “alive”?

 All levels of life have systems of related parts.

 A system is an organized group of interacting parts.
 A cell is a system of chemicals and processes. It is the basic unit
of life.
 A body system includes organs that interact.
 An ecosystem includes living and nonliving things that interact.
 Structure and function are related in biology.
 Structure determines function.
 The structure is the shape of the object.
 The function is the object’s specific role.
 Organisms must maintain homeostasis to survive in diverse
environments.
 Homeostasis is the maintenance of constant internal conditions.
 All living organisms must live in a stable environment.
 Evolution explains the unity and diversity of life.
 Evolution is the change in living things over time. The genetic
makeup of a population of a species change.
 It accounts for both the diversity and the unity of life.
 Traits are being inherited and transferred.
 The continuity of life depends on the inheritance of biological
information in the form of DNA molecules.
 The genetic information is encoded in the nucleotide sequences
of the DNA.
 Organisms reproduce.
 It is necessary part of living; process of making more of one’s
own kind.
 Organisms are interdependent with one another.
 Organisms have evolved to live and interact with other
organisms.
 Ecology deals with the interactions of living organisms with one
another and their environment.
 Organisms acquire and process energy.
 Living organisms use a source of energy for their metabolic
activities.
 Some living organisms capture the light energy and convert it
into chemical energy in food.
 Some living organisms use chemical energy stored in molecules
obtained from food.

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In addition to the properties mentioned, the two additional unifying themes in the
study of life include the scientific inquiry and science, technology and
society.
 Scientific Inquiry
 The process of science includes observation-based discovery and
the testing of explanations through the hypothetic-deductive.
 Scientific credibility depends on the repeatability of observation
and experiments.
 Science, Technology and Society
 Many technologies are goal-oriented applications of science.
 The relationships of science and technology to society are now
more crucial to understand than ever before.

Activity 4: What a Beautiful Life!

Directions: Given the characteristics of life in the first column, answer the
related questions posted in the second column.

Characteristics of Life Questions

What is the level of organization

Displays organization of living organisms?

Why do organisms reproduce?

Ability to reproduce

Why do organisms adapt?

Ability to adapt on changing
environment

In what way do living organisms

acquire energy?
Requires energy
Why is energy significant?

How can we maintain

homeostasis?
Maintains homeostasis

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 What’s More
Activity 5: Connect Me

Directions: Show the connections of the given biotic and abiotic factors written
inside the box through a concept map.

Soil sunlight water Carbon dioxide

Oxygen Corn plant Man Chicken

Activity 6: What’s the connection?

Biology, also referred as Biological Science or Life Science deals with the study
of living organisms. It is divided into subdisciplines. As a broad discipline,
biologists use the term unifying themes where the study is being anchored.
The major unifying themes that were mentioned include the cell theory as a
description of living systems, continuity of life as explained by the molecular
basis of inheritance, the interdependence of structure and function, the
diversity of life brought by evolution, unity of living systems as explained by
evolutionary conservations, and emergent properties that arise from the
organization of life.

Directions: Describe each unifying theme illustrated below. Give details on how
these themes serve as the foundation in the study of biology.

1.

Growth and development

Continuity of life

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 2.

Organization of Life
Acquire and process energy

Directions: Using the illustration below, explain briefly the interconnections of

living things and their environment. State how human being may value life.

Activity 7: Picture It Out

Directions: Create a visual representation of each theme. Write a sentence that

will explain how your picture is connected to the theme.

Unifying Themes Illustration/Explanation

1. Biological System

2. Cellular Basis of Life

3. Interaction with its

environment

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 4. Energy and Life

5. Form and Function

6. Reproduction and
Inheritance

7. Regulation

8. Adaptation

9. Evolution

10. Biology and Society

Activity 8: Complete Me
Directions: The two additional unifying themes of Biology are: “science benefits
from a cooperative approach and diverse viewpoints” and “scientists make
observations and then form and test hypotheses”. Using the template below,
share your ideas about the mentioned themes as you relate it to science,
technology and society.

Subject Theme: _________

My chosen word is ______.
First, I know that ____.
In addition, I know that ____.
Finally, I know that ___.
Now, you know something that I know ____.

What I Have Learned

Understanding how life came about is a deep scientific undertaking.
Organisms’ function, structures, growth and origin are indeed one of many
diverse topics that should be explored to grasp the complexities of life.
Generally, the following statements provide key concepts on the unifying
themes in the study of life.

1. Biology is about the study of life.

2. The unifying themes connect the different subdisciplines that make up
biology as a science.

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 3. The unifying themes of biology comprise the cell theory as a description
of living systems, continuity of life, interdependence of function and
structure, evolution, unity of living systems and the properties that
arise from the organization of life.
4. The living organisms are composed of cells as what was discussed in the
cell theory. The cell theory is the foundation of our understanding of
reproduction and growth of organisms.
5. The continuity of life is best explained by the molecular basis of
inheritance. Heredity, which is the continuity of life from one generation
to the next, is dependent on correct copying of cell’s DNA into daughter
cells.
6. The function and structure are interdependent.
7. The evolutionary change give rise to the diversity of life.
8. Living organisms (biotic factors) are dependent on its environment
which consists of nonliving organisms (abiotic factors). Living
organisms also interact with other living organisms.
9. Biotic factors (living things) are defined by set of characteristics
including the ability to reproduce, grow, move and ability to adapt to its
environment. They need food, water and other abiotic factors for their
growth and development.
10. Abiotic factors are inanimate objects which include rocks, water,
weather and other living things present in the environment.

11. Biological systems are organized.

12. The study of Biology is important. It enables us to make appropriate
decisions in life. Failure to grasp biological concepts lead into an
inappropriate decisions.
13. One must value life by taking good care of all beings, humans, plants
and animals.

What I Can Do
“Covid-19 is one of the current problems that the world is experiencing. It is an
infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome which affects
different people in different ways. How do you think Biology can be used to
solve this
problem? (Include also on your discussion on how life may be valued.)
Make a creative presentation for your discussion.

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Assessment
Directions: Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper.

1. Genes are passed from one generation to the next generation through
______________.
A. evolution
B. regulation
C. form and function
D. reproduction and inheritance
2. Which among the given examples describes the unifying form and
structure?
A. cellular basis of life
B. light as source of energy
C. bats have wings specialized for flying
D. living things arise from pre-existing cells
3. Makahiya plant closes its leaflets when touched. This is an example of
______________
A. energy and life
B. response to stimuli
C. form and structure
D. reproduction and inheritance
4. Describe the image illustrated.
A. It shows how organisms respond to its
environment.
B. Organisms are growing and developing.
C. There is a transfer of energy among living
organisms.
D. They are evolving.
5. Which statement does not describe the image on
the right side?
A. Plants acquire energy for them to perform
its task, the food making.
B. Plants need the abiotic factors in order to
grow.
C. There is a transfer of energy from the sun to the plants.
D. They are evolving.
Which is TRUE among the given statements
that tell something about the illustration? A.
Early organisms lack cell.
B. Cell is the basic unit of life.
C. Cell is present among eukaryotic only.
D. Cell is present on fossils.

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7. Living organisms cannot live alone, they are interacting with the abiotic
factors for sustainability of life. Which among the organisms is
considered as the abiotic?
a. bacteria
b. plant
c. light
d. man
8. Chameleons shift colors wherever they go. They are able to turn any
colors or combine colors depending on where the environment is. What
trait is being described?
a. adaptation
b. interaction
c. inheritance
d. reproduction
9. The diversity of life arises by change leading to the present biodiversity
that we see. This is what we call as ______________.
A. evolution
B. adaptation
C. inheritance
D. reproduction

10. The field of science is changing the lives of all organisms through
technology and research. This is explained by ______________.
A. adaptation
B. biology and society
C. energy and life
D. inheritance
11. All organisms alive today have descended from simple cellular creatures
billions of years ago. Biologists were able to identify and preserved some
of the characteristics of that earliest organisms. This is associated in
what theme?
A. Function and structure are interdependent
B. Cell theory as a description of living systems.
C. Emergent properties arise from the organization of life.
D. Unity of living systems is explained by evolutionary conservation.
12. Research plays significant role for the improvement of lives in a given
society. With these, more scientists agree that all scientific knowledge
comes from ______________.
A. experimentation
B. observation
C. textbooks
D. both experimentation and observation

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 13. The orchard sprayed with the chemical yields an average of 60 kilos of
mango per tree, the other orchard yields an average of 40 kilos of
mangoes per tree. Based on the data, in order to have a better yield
trees must ______________.
I. receive the same amount of sunlight
II. receive the same amount of water
III. increase the orchard spray
a. I only
b. II only
c. I, II
d. I, II, III
14. Many threatened or endangered species can be saved by a large
______________.

A. coal mine
B. food chain
C. wildlife hunting
D. reforestation project
15. Living organisms can be protected through fighting deforestation. Which
statement/s describe/s this? A. Plant more trees.
B. Reduce the use of products made from wood fiber.
C. Demand forest products from sustainable sources and
deforestation fee supply chains.
D. The choices are all correct.
Additional Activities

1. Explain the quotation “Your body isn’t just a body, it’s an ecosystem” by
Steve Mills. You may present your work through an essay or illustration.

2. Explain how Biology can be studied from a microscopic approach to

global approach. (Indicate the unifying themes where the study of
Biology is being anchored).

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