Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Left and Right Brains

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Pupils research the part of the brain known as the corpus callosum. The part of the brain that connects the left and right brain, students investigate its functions and how data passes from one side to another.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mystery of the Matching Marks

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners view a Power Point and complete activities related to genetic evidence of human evolution. In this molecular evolution lesson, students view and discuss a provide presentation. They search for the "tell-tale telomere" and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The First Humans: Prehistory-3500 B.C. "Lucy"

For Teachers 3rd - 7th
Students explore prehistoric times by completing web activities in class. In this human ancestry lesson, students identify the archaeological discovery of the "Lucy" skeleton and what it meant for science. Students investigate the Leakey...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Archeological Finds

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore archeology and it contributions to human history. They write a magazine article describing the discovery of a dig.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cracking the Genetic Code

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners explain what the knowledge of DNA can tell us about ourselves and other organisms and species. They also explore the systematic study of the human genome.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Chromosome Fusion

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students see how patterns can reveal events of the past, thereby merging elements of both experimental and historical science.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Human Evolution

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students make and use observations of Laetoli footprints to provide clues to life in the past. They collect and analyze data to study the relationship between foot length and body height.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Archaeology as a Career

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders read about archaeology as a career. They develop a list of questions they would like to ask an archaeologist and then actually interview an archaeologist on the future of archaeology as a career.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Chromosome Connection

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students evaluate the degree of chromosome similarity and difference between humans and apes. Students infer about the relationship between a human and ape based on similarities found.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

AP Biology Chordates - Birds/Mammals

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students participate in a layered curriculum units with a variety of activities like: Library Research and choose one topic. Find 2 articles on the topic, cite the article, and summarize each article.
Handout
Other

Cartage: Discovery of Early Hominids

For Students 9th - 10th
This comprehensive essay provides a brief history of the Australopithecines an in depth discussion of the discovery of the early fossils, and a look at the ancestors of the Australopithecines.
Handout
Science Struck

Science Struck: Lucy: The First Hominid Skeleton

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the archaeologists who discovered the first Hominid skeleton and other ancestors of humans.
Website
The Field Museum

Field Museum: Exhibits: Evolving Planet: Hominids

For Students 9th - 10th
In this effective exhibit, you will examine hominid evolution, view pictures of our ancient ancestors, and delve into three trends in hominid evolution that brought humankind into the modern era. A video is also provided where you will...
Handout
Other

Washington State University: Hominid Species Timeline

For Students 9th - 10th
This complete resource contains a chronological chart that shows the main hominid species and their approximate relationships in time. A description of each hominid is included as well.
Website
University of California

Uc Berkeley: Ethiopian Fossils From 6 Million Year Old Hominid

For Students 9th - 10th
In this article from 2004, UC Berkeley reports that additional fossils have been found from the 2001 discovery of Ardipithecus kadabba. This find holds great importance because it is suggested that it may represent the first species...
Handout
Talk Origins Archive

Talk Origins: The Hominid Species

For Students 9th - 10th
Talk Origins gives a broad description of the types of Hominid species, and then gives a description of each species. Includes the specific characteristics of each, and explains the differences between the species.
Handout
Talk Origins Archive

Talk Origins: Fossil Hominids: Richard Leakey

For Students 9th - 10th
Biography of Richard Leakey that deals with his paleontological work and his efforts to preserve African wildlife.
Website
American Academy of Achievement

Academy of Achievement: Lee R. Berger, ph.d.

For Students 9th - 10th
A biography of Lee Berger, a paleoanthropologist who made critical discoveries about our human ancestry during his explorations in Southern Africa. As he talks of his discoveries, you can feel his palpable excitement. Includes a profile,...
Graphic
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Laetoli Trackways Diagram

For Students 9th - 10th
View a diagram of the hominid footprints that archaeologist Mary Leakey's team found at Laetoli in Tanzania.
Article
Scientific American

The Strange Case of the Minnesota Iceman

For Students 9th - 10th
The modern-day corpse of a human-like hominid, preserved in a block of ice, encountered by researchers in the 1960s. Surely the zoological discovery of the century!
Handout
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Answers to Exploration Questions: Human Evolution

For Students 9th - 10th
On this site, find answers to the exploration activity on human evolution. Questions discuss both physical traits of hominid as well as DNA evidence.
Handout
Wikimedia

Wikipedia: Sahelanthropus

For Students 9th - 10th
An encyclopedia article on the oldest known hominid discusses the features of the fossils that were found, the region in which they were found, and what this means for human evolution.
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers:how Did Humans Evolve?

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Explore paleoanthropology by going on a virtual "dig" to answer questions about famous fossil finds. Explain how alternate hominid family trees result from different interpretations of the same fossil evidence.
Handout
American Association for the Advancement of Science

American Association for the Advancement of Science: The Oldest Known Campfires?

For Students 9th - 10th
A short article reporting on the discovery at an archaeological dig of an apparent human-controlled fire from 790,000 years ago. This early human would have been hominids.

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