Lesson Class : Adaptations/ Natural Selection/ Course Science

Title/Focus Darwin (this will be over two days)

PROGRAM OF STUDY OUTCOMES

● observe variation in living things, and describe examples of variation among species
and within species (e.g., observe and describe characteristics that distinguish two
closely related species)
● identify examples of niches, and describe the role of variation in enabling closely
related living things to survive in the same ecosystem (e.g., investigate different bird
species found in a local park ecosystem, and infer how each is adapted to life within
that ecosystem)
● identify the role of variation in species survival under changing environmental
conditions (e.g., resistance to disease, ability to survive in severe environments)

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of the lesson students will be able to:

1. Describe how different adaptations help animals
2. Explain variation within species
3. Explain how we get variation within species

MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT

● Power point
● Worksheet/Handout
● Paper plates
● Rice, Rubber bands, Froot Loops, Marshmallows, Cookies, Plastic Eggs, Noodles
● Tweezers, Hair clips, Scissor, Chopsticks, Scoopulas, Spoons
● Tape

PREPARATION AND LOGISTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

● Have the powerpoint presentation open and ready to go

● Have open a 20 second timer
● Have worksheet printed out
● For second period of this class have desks moved to form 7 groups instead of 5
● For second period, have plates with items pre-taped down to desks before students
come in.
 PROCEDURE

Introduction Time

● Last class we talked about how to name different species and how we 5 min
can classify them.
● Based on what we talked about, are all the organisms of a particular
species exactly the same?
○ No, there are a lot of differences. Examples: humans, dogs,
flowers
● Today we will talk about adaptations and variations

Body Time

Slide Show ● Go through the slide show, talking about adaptations 50 min
and variations
● Stop when you get to activity slide (this is where the
next class will begin)

Day 2 ● Students will arrive in class and be instructed to 5-7 min

gather in the middle of the room. Ensure that they do
not touch anything.
● Students will be given verbal instructions
○ Everyone will be given a different utensil.
We have things like scoopulas (show them
one so they know what you are talking
about), spoons, chopsticks, clips, scissors and
tweezers. Your job will be to collect as much
as you can from the middle pile in 20
seconds and bring it back to your home plate.
You will then count how much you collected
and record it into the chart on your paper. If
you drop anything on the way from the
middle to your plate you must stop to pick up
the pieces with your utensil. YOU ARE NOT
TO USE YOUR HANDS. Your plate must
stay near the edge of the table. One table has
eggs with gumballs inside, you must crack
open the egg and collect the gumballs. You
will be counting the gumballs.
 ○ Any questions?
○ First things first I will need you to
hypothesize a few things. Your answers will
need to go on the sheet that I am handing out
now. The instructions are also listed here so
if you do not get something try reading them!
○ You may all choose who you are working
with today. But there may only be as many
people in a group as there are desks in a
group. (see 5 desks, have a group of 5)

Activity ● I will start the timer for you to start once you are all 25-30 min
in the same waiting position. This will look like you
kneeling on the group with your hands by your sides.
● Once you have completed counting your objects
from the middle, record your value, put them all
back in the middle and move one “station” to the
left. Get back into a ready position and we will start.
● Start a 20 second timer once everyone is in a ready
position.
● Repeat until every group has seen each object.

Wrap up ● Have students clear their desks of all items (garbage 15 min
for noodles, icky plates, anything broken) (back on
my desk for everything else)
● Return to their seats and go through slides 27/28/29
● Then have students complete the questions on their
worksheet.
○ This will initiate them to think about the
ideas before they are told about them.
● Once the questions are answered, finish going
through the rest of the slideshow to wrap up the
ideas of natural selection, speciation, adaptations and
variations,

Conclusion Time

● Tomorrow we will be moving on to talking about niches! We saw some

of this while we were at the zoo, so think back to that field trip for
 tomorrow!
● Have students ensure their spaces are clear
○ Push in your chair
○ Each student must present and put in the garbage at least 2 pieces
of garbage before they may leave

Assessment

● Formative assessment in the answering of the questions from the activity

Additional Notes/reflection:

This was a super great activity! I had covered the noodles in oil to make sure they didn't stick,
next time I would use less oil, but still use something to keep individual noodles apart.
Students got super creative with the scissors, they used the handles to pick things up instead of
the cutting edge part!
I also think that next time I would tape their plates to the edge of the table and have them leave
them at each station rather than taking them with them.
I would also ensure that students are actually picking up dropped items with the utensil… not
exactly sure how I would make this happen, but it is something to think about. Especially as in
real life if a bird drops a worm they are fairly likely to try to get the same one rather than keep on
going.
The best part about this experiment style lesson was that it really engaged my chatty students and
had them super captivated. They got fairly loud, but it was because of the competition. This
group is also very competitive, so it hooked them for sure.
I had chosen to do this activity because I had done it as a student and it stuck with me till now, so
I hope it sticks with the students. Even if it's just because there was cooked spaghetti on their
desks Monday morning haha.