1-LS1-2: How Parents Help Their Young Survive
Also called NGSS 1-LS1-2 · Topic: Structure, Function, and Information Processing · Life Science
The Official Wording
Read texts and use media to determine patterns in behavior of parents and offspring that help offspring survive.
Clarification statement: Examples of patterns of behaviors could include the signals that offspring make (such as crying, cheeping, and other vocalizations) and the responses of the parents (such as feeding, comforting, and protecting the offspring).
NGSS Lead States, 2013 · Read it on nextgenscience.org · checked October 15, 2026
What 1-LS1-2 Means in Plain English
First graders read books and watch short videos about animal families, then look for patterns. Babies send signals, such as crying, chirping or squeaking, and parents answer by feeding, cuddling, carrying or guarding them. Children notice that these actions help the young stay alive.
Evidence comes from books, photos and videos rather than handling real animals, and the focus stays on actions children can see. Kindergarten's look at animal needs (K-LS1-1) comes first, and 3-LS2-1 later asks how living in groups helps animals survive.
1-LS1-2 I Can Statements
- I can find a pattern in how baby animals ask for help.
- I can tell how animal parents keep their young safe.
- I can use books and videos to find facts about animals.
1-LS1-2 Worked Example
A read-and-watch investigation a class can run over two or three science blocks with a big T-chart.
What do baby animals do to get help, and how do their parents respond?
Set It Up: Short nature videos or picture books about barn swallows, house cats and emperor penguins, and a T-chart labeled Baby does and Parent does.
- Watch barn swallow chicks as a parent flies in.Chicks gape and call, parent drops in an insect
- Watch a mother cat when a kitten wanders off and mews.She carries it back by the scruff of its neck
- Watch an emperor penguin chick whistle in a crowd of adults.Its parent finds it by its call and feeds it
- Fill in the T-chart for each animal.Baby does: calls. Parent does: feeds, carries, protects
- Look across all three rows for something the same.Every baby signals, every parent answers
In all three animal families, the young made a sound and the parent answered in a way that kept the baby fed or safe.
Why it works: Young animals cannot yet find food or stay safe alone, so signals that bring a parent help them survive.
Common Mistakes with 1-LS1-2
Assuming every baby gets care
“All baby animals have a mom to feed them.”
Try this: Read about sea turtles, which hatch alone and head to the ocean. Many animals get care, but some young survive on their own.
Listing actions without the reason
A T-chart that says “mom carries kitten” and stops there
Try this: For each row ask how the action helps the baby stay alive. Answers like warmth, food or safety complete the pattern.
Treating cartoons as evidence
Using a talking-animal cartoon to show what penguin parents do
Try this: Pick nonfiction books and real nature videos. Cartoon animals act like people, so they cannot show what real animal families do.
Where 1-LS1-2 Fits
Practice 1-LS1-2
Quick Check
- A baby bird opens its mouth wide and chirps. What does the parent usually do?
- Why does a mother cat carry a kitten back when it wanders?
- How can an emperor penguin parent find its chick in a big crowd?