Above all else, a bird's color is what sets it apart from other birds. Learn what creates their unique plumage in an installment of a video series. The video presents the physical and chemical reasons for the variation in colors as well as how light creates different shades.

Concepts

birds, species, animal species, biodiversity, feathers

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Prior to watching the video, have the class create hypotheses predicting the reason for different feather colors
• Have learners make a list of new vocabulary while watching the lesson; discuss these new words as a class

Classroom Considerations

• Prior knowledge of melanin and pigments is helpful

• This video is hosted on YouTube

Pros

• Uses both images and text to describe the scientific concepts
• Examines a wide range of species and colors of plumage

Cons

• None

Common Core

SL.9-10.2 RST.9-10.7