Kingdom protista
After the microscope was improved scientists were able to see inside
living cells. Living cells have parts inside called organelles. Organelles
are tiny structures inside cells that help the cell carry out life processes.
The most important organelle of most cells is called the nucleus. The
nucleus can be thought of as the brain of the cell. It directs the cell’s
activities. Cells with a nucleus are called Eukaryotic Cells and cells
without a nucleus are called Prokaryotic Cells.
The protists are a kingdom of very simple organisms. Most protists
are made up of only one cell. Some are many-celled. Unlike bacteria, all
protists have a nucleus so they are Eukaryotic Cells. Some protists live in
water. They live in lakes, streams, ponds and in the ocean. Some live in
moist soil. Some even live in the bodies of animals.
With its single cell, a protist does everything that you do in order to
keep alive. A one-celled protist moves. It eats. It breathes. It excretes
wastes. It reproduces. It senses what is going on around it. These are all
the functions that all living things must do.
Like other cells, a protist has a cell membrane, cytoplasm, and a
nucleus or several nuclei. Because the protist has to do everything with
its single cell, there are many other structures within the cell as well.
Read the descriptions of the protists below. Match them
with the pictures. Write the name of the protist on the line.
The euglena has a whip like structure to help move in the
water.
The paramecium is slipper shaped and has short hairs to
it move in the water.
The amoeba looks like a blob of jelly.
__________ ___________ ____________
