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Geography, Ecology, and Folklife
Students identify how do geography and ecology influence a region's folklife. Then they investigate this question and consider how an outsider might view their own region in this lesson. Students also identify how the natural world, even...
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Get Ready, Get Set, Hibernate
Students match each body part or idea from a work bank about methods of animal adaptations for winter survival. They observe as the first one, food is covered with the whole class before completing the rest of the diagram. They discuss...
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Bird Bodies
Learners read about and explore the different types of birds. They discuss how all birds are alike and what makes some different from the others. They experiment picking up "food items" using different tools that represent different...
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Mammal Teeth and Skulls-Adaptations and Identification
Student study the differentiation of teeth and skull adaptations in mammals in general and 14 common terrestrial mammals. They explore more about these mammals, their natural history, their adaptations and their identification through an...
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Create An Insect
Learners create a new species of insect. They create a list of insect characteristics and use this as a springboard to draw an insect of their own. Students write a brief descriptive paragraphs about their insect, giving particular...
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Bird Land
Young scholars role-playing the concept of evolution through naturally occurring mutations. Working in pairs, they model how birds have adapted to the food sources in their environment through changes in their beak size and shapes....
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Adaptations
Fifth graders are able to physically record on a sheet of paper predictions and results of an experiment pertaining to the adaptations of Arctic animals after a class discussion about the topic.
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Through the Eyes of an Owl
Students describe vertebrates in terms of observable body parts and characteristics and describe life cycles of familiar organisms. They identify familiar organisms as part of a food chain or food web and describe their feeding...
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Mimicry: An Example of Adaptation
Students are able to explain the relationship between adaptation and ability for survival and reproduction. They are able to give examples of a series of adaptations that would support the idea that evolution is a series of minor...
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Social Sstudies: Change in Space and Time
Students examine the dynamics of change and compare and contrast it with other cultures. They cite examples of how people change over time and explain why it is necessary. Students organize a skit, Webpage, or Powerpoint presentation...
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Fish Adaptations and Habitats
Students explore specific adaptations and how they pertain to the survival of the individual and the species. Students design a fish based on certain criteria and determine the type of habitat which would be best suited for their fish's...
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Compare Human-made Objects with Natural Objects
Learners examine and observe how many human-made objects get their basic design from things in nature. They listen to the book "Nature Got There First," compare/contrast hollow bones with drinking straws, bird beaks and tool pliers, and...
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TE Lesson: Can You Taste It?
Students investigate how animals adapt to use its senses to identify foods that are nutritious or noxious. They determine how they associate foods with other things such as birthdays. They discuss the role of the nervous system in the...
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Corals & Coral Reefs
Students describe a coral reef, how it is formed and its inhabitants. They explain the ecological and economic importance of coral reefs and discuss its present-day threats. Lesson contains adaptations for all levels.
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Habitats and Adaptations
Students research and describe the habitat and adaptations of a reef animal. After the student is assigned a habitat, they design and draw a cresture adapted to eat each food and to live in each habitat.
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Animal Adaptations
Young scholars use items from boxes to dress up classmates as animals adapted to a given environment.
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Oyster Morphs: Adaptations to the Environment
Learners demonstrate how organisms adapt to their environment. They examine prey and predators, natural selection, and adaptations by representing oyster morph.
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Marine & Aquatic Habitats Activities - Terrestrial Forests vs. Kelp Forests
Middle schoolers discuss concept and specificity of habitats, both marine and terrestrial, list similarities and differences in the habitats of a kelp forest and a terrestrial forest, compare types of organisms that occupy corresponding...
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So You Think the World Evolves Around You?
Students examine the topic of evolution as it relates to biodiversity in various remote areas of the world. They watch videos, conduct Internet research, and in small groups create a digital video report to illustrate common evolution in...
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Change or Adaptation
Students identify the adaptive forces in the life cycle of plants, animals, and humans, isolate and identify the role that change and adaptation play in extreme environments and research and write a short term paper using MLA citations.
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You Talkin' To Me?: Investigations in Animal Behavior
Students investigate a variety of animal behaviors, examine various modes of animal communication, and develop a catalog analyzing, interpreting, and reporting their results.
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The Creation of an Imaginary Species
Learners explore the characteristics that distinguish different forms of animal life on Earth which are the results of natural selection and adaptations to their environment. The creatures are created using a game and then drawn by the...
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Camouflage
Third graders collect insects and various bits of the insects' habitats in order to develop an understanding of how camouflage makes the insect fit to survive in its environment.
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Keeping Warm When it is Cold: How does a polar bear keep warm?
Students make a model of a polar bear and discuss why fur/skin color is important. They also perform a simple experiment using black and white socks to determine how color affects temperature.