Introduction
This final lesson will further explore and explain evolution through experimentation
and assessment.
The Task
You will find out why certain characteristics survive over others in the
evolution of all species of life, even families. You will do this by experimentation,
exploration and teamworking with each other.
Resources
Science experiment (click here
to view lesson)
The Process
The process is as follows:
- Completing the moth experiment and discussing it.
- Using what was learned about evolution from this experiment, you will
form hypotheses (educated guesses) keep reading!
- You are going to apply the theory of evolution to family traits. Using
the fictitious family from lesson 4 (click here
to review), you will compare that existence to today's families.
- After you have worked individually on this, you will decide in groups
which traits have become extinct and make educated guesses why.
- Once each group has finished a list of all the traits will be placed
on the board.
- As a class, we will choose the ones we all agree on that are still
around.
- Assessment: You will then assess why these traits survived over the
others.
Conclusion
This lesson is complicated. At the conclusion, you may still feel confused.
However, do not fret, the main goal here is to get you to apply knowledge
that you have learned to new and different situations. By attempting to
explore the evolution of families, you will increase your understanding
of evolution, and also begin the elusive task of understanding more fully
the roles of families.
Lesson
Last updated April 28, 1996. Return to the 
Unit
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