It's not often that you come across a clever laboratory activity that is both imaginative and comprehensive! Using M&M's and Reese's peanut butter candies to represent two different clam species, young biologists test for "relative...

The class will make observations to determine how environment has shaped the way particular birds and fish eat. They will view a series of photographs, read two short articles, and then consider how food availability has determined how...

Adaptations must be made as environments change. This fabulous presentation features Icelandic icefish, a transparent, scaleless specimen that even has colorless blood. Genetics and adaptations concepts are explored as scientists study...

Eugenics philosophy takes survival of the fittest to a whole new level. With a research-focused lesson, young scientists examine the history of the eugenics movement and its impact on society. Pupils engage with a video clip, primary...

Students participate in a role playing lab that allows students to experience how different beak adaptations play a role in the type of food the animal can eat, therefore playing a role in the survival of the species.

Students explore the harsh conditions of Spain's Rio Tinto River and research the microbes that nonetheless manage to thrive there. They synthesize their knowledge by creating a reality television show set in the Rio Tinto with microbes...

Students experiment with traits. In this Science lesson, students test the strength of beetles using M&M candies in lieu of the insects. Students use the Hardy-Weinberg Equation to calculate possible offspring traits of further...

Now you see it, now you don't! The stick bug exhibits the ability to disappear into a wooded environment. Why does this adaptation manifest in some species, but not in others? Life science students explore animal adaptations in nature...

Fifth graders discover the adaptation of species through analyzing pictures.  In this scientific discovery instructional activity, 5th graders discuss the concept of adaptation in order for survival.  Students view many images...

Students explore plant needs and growth. In this plant science lesson, students use a cereal box to complete a plant growth graph activity.

Students explore natural selection. For this genetic adaptation lesson, students discover why certain traits continue and some traits disappear. Students discover how species evolve and change. Resources are provided.

Learners 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.

students consider the reality television show 'Survivor' as a means to contemplate what it means to be a survivor. They create fictional characters and explore how different personal qualities would help and hinder their success on...

Students examine the ways that populations become diverse and how mutation changes the diversity of a population.  In this exploratory instructional activity students study natural selection by completing a lab activity and...

An upper-level biology activity, the comprehensive worksheet found here accompanies a PowerPoint and the video The Making of the Fittest: The Birth and Death of Genes, both of which are linked to through the website. Depending on the...

Survival of the fittest isn't just for the movies! A five-part lesson explores several different species with known adaptations and analyzes them for their survival strategies. Using both video and research data, scholars draw...

Seventh graders examine the concept of an ecosystem and how there is a variety of representations of life that exist there. They look at the equilibrium that is reached in stable communities and how the variable of change in...

Students 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...

In the deserts of Arizona and New Mexico, some tiny creatures show just how quickly natural selection can turn a mutation into an advantageous adaptation. Watch a video about rock pocket mice, who show that one small change can make all...

Fourth graders, in groups, design a paperclip grasshopper. They determine its ability to survive a prey by jumping high, far, or with a distracting behavior.

Sixth graders create their own "never before seen" marine creatures and examine how not all creatures in the sea swim, not all have sharp teeth

Learners explore the theory of natural selection given certain scenarios. In this biology lesson, students graph data taken from the experiment. They explain the factors that contribute to the survival of the fittest.

Learners 'browse' like a deer, demonstrate how deer react when danger appears, demonstrate survival of the fittest, identify 4-5 sources of danger to deer and describe 1-2 ways deer protect themselves.

Fourth graders make a chart of animals and plants that live in either the desert, the ocean, or the tundra. In this environment lesson plan, 4th graders work in groups to discover characteristics needed for these animals to live in that...