Students are introduced to the concept of evolution by natural selection from a historical standpoint. They examine the evidence and arguments that support the theory of natural selection.

Students define the term "evolution" and relate it to species adaptation, supporting their ideas with examples. They locate, correctly cite, and briefly review two Web sites with information on finches commonly found in their state or count

Students explore Darwin's trip to the Galapagos Islands. In groups, students create a field guide for one of the five major islands in the Galapagos.

Students explain in their own words why organisms live together. In this biology lesson, students model what happens to organisms if their environment changes. They explain the importance of evolution.

How can we keep racism out of our society? Analyze the factors that lead to racism today and research previous scientific findings that impacted social policy. Your high school students identify ways to prevent past mistakes from...

Ninth graders explore evolution. They study a cartoon scenario of a rabbit population in which there is selection and a change of gene frequency. Students discuss frequencies, evolution, and speciation.

Students trace major developments in the history of evolutionary science. They discuss the connections between major events in world history and major events in the development of evolutionary thought by creating timelines.

Students construct an evolutionary tree representing specialization, diversity, and selection using easily obtained materials. They use at least twenty pieces of hardware to classify then develop "evolutionary" relationships between the...

Fans of Sherlock Holmes may be surprised to learn that in addition to stories of the famous deductionist, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is also the creator of Professor Challenger. An irascible, unpredictable scientist, Challenger was featured...

Students analyze Gregor Mendel's discovery of a process of biological evolution. They also explore how recessive and dominant traits are passed from one generation of living organisms to the next. This instructional activity involves...

Try a twist on the old finch beak and chopsticks activity by using M&Ms on a Twister mat. Spoons, knives, forks, and chopsticks represent beaks and are randomly assigned to your little birds, who must collect as much food as possible...

Can human activity cause animals to evolve? Your budding biologists will find out the answer to some of the big questions in natural selection with a peppered moth activity. They will watch a few short videos, look at pictures, and...

Students working in pairs attempt to produce a full sequence of 13 cards of one suit (ace - to king). This must be done by shuffling the suit of cards for each round, then checking the cards.

High schoolers explore natural selection. For this genetic adaptation instructional activity, students discover why certain traits continue and some traits disappear. High schoolers discover how species evolve and change. Resources are...

In this detailed and comprehensive multi-day activity, budding evolutionary biologists use real data from lizard populations in the Canary Islands to examine evolution and natural selection. 

The second lesson in the series begins with a starter activity discussing wild versus domesticated animals. Then, scholars play a card game, with optional variations, to emphasize artificial selection. Next, they attend a field trip to a...

The Galapagos Islands inspired Darwin to develop his theory of evolution. These wonderful islands will also be the topic of a lesson on habitat and conservation. In small groups, learners will collect and synthesize information regarding...

Students investigate the concepts of genetics and how it is tied to the variations found within different species and how it is tied to adaptations. They review the theory of evolution and factors found to help create variation. The...

Learners examine the topic of natural selection. As a class, they write their own definition to survival of the fittest and watch a video. Using the internet, they research how Darwin started to examine this process using finches and how...

Ninth graders construct and conduct a laboratory experiment illustrating the transfer of mutations. They compare and contrast natural selection in organisms with long and short reproductive cycles.

Discover the concept of found poetry in this engaging lesson plan. Secondary students will explore the poem "Natural Selection" and compare it to the writings of Charles Darwin in Origin of the Species. Students chose a text and create...

Students read Lamarck's obituary and respond to questions. They discuss the four laws from Lamarack's studies. Students apply this information to scientific theories in general.

Students construct a working definition of the word "evolution," and list the key points of Darwin's theory of natural selection. They create paper moths to help them explain the importance of camouflage and how it relates to natural...

In this reading comprehension worksheet, students read an extract from Darwin's book The Voyage of the Beagle.  Students answer 12 comprehension questions in 15 minutes in this SAT practice worksheet.