Science
SCI.III.4.1
Strand:
Using Scientific Knowledge in Life Science
- Evolution
Standard:
Benchmark:
Grade: 4th
All students will explain how scientists construct and scientifically test
theories concerning the origin of life and evolution of species
Explain how fossils provide evidence about the nature of ancient life
Constructing and Reflecting:
SCI.I.1.1 - Generate reasonable questions about the world based on observation.
SCI.I.1.2 - Develop solutions to problems through reasoning, observation, and investigation.
SCI.I.1.5 - Develop strategies and skills for information gathering and problem solving.
SCI.II.1.1 - In the scientific world, decisions must be based on factual evidence that can be replicated.
SCI.II.1.4 - Develop an awareness of and sensitivity to the natural world.
SCI.II.1.5 - Develop an awareness of contributions made to science by people of diverse backgrounds and cultures.
Vocabulary
Context
Types of evidence:
• Fossils
• Extinct
• Ancient
• Modern
• life forms
Plant and animal fossils, museum dioramas,
painting drawings of ancient life and or habitats
Knowledge and Skills
Resources
Coloma Resources:
Scientists who find and use fossils to create an
understanding of the past are paleontologists.
Fossil tradebooks
Fossils:
Fossil Kits
•
•
•
•
•
can be an impression of a dead plant or animal
that has been replaced by minerals.
can be formed by filling in spaces left from
footprints or decaying bodies.
can be a plant/animal trapped in tree sap.
is a preserved record of life from a specific time.
is one of many tools used by scientists to study
the history of life on earth.
Students will:
•
Identify the following types of fossils:
1. An impression of a dead plant or animal that
has been replaced by minerals
2. A mold of a footprint or a decaying body that
has been filled in with sand/clay
3. A fragment/whole animal that has been
trapped in tree sap
•
Match fossils with the time period when they
were most likely formed
•
Explain another tool scientists use to study the
history of life on Earth
Other Resources:
Fossilization And Adaptation:
Activities In Paleontology – part of Learning
from the Fossil Record – good info and game
activity for the entire class.
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fosrec/Breithaup
t2.html
Fossil Horse Cybermuseum – OUTSTANDING
site with fossil records, info on stratification,
great illustrations and FUN http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/vertpaleo/fhc/fir
stCM.htm
Michigan Teacher Network Resources http://mtn.merit.edu/mcf/SCI.III.4.E.1.html
NASA – Earth Observatory – Finding Fossils
from Space http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/Fossils/
fossils.html
Biography of Nicolaus Steno http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/Giants
/Steno/
Secrets of the Mummy – The Why Files –
NICE articlehttp://whyfiles.org/shorties/140mummy_iceman
/index.html
The Glory that is Sue – The Why Files – how
fossils are prepared – NICE!
http://whyfiles.org/113dino_prep/index.html
“Fossils, Fossils” Sing the Science Standards
with the Science Explosion Songbook
Instruction
Benchmark Question: How do scientists trace
the origin and development of a species?
Classroom Assessment
Coloma Assessments:
None required
Focus Question: What evidence supports the
theory of evolution?
Evidence for Evolution WebQuest Theodosius Dobzhansky, a geneticist whose work
influenced 20th century research on evolutionary
theory, said, "Nothing in biology makes sense, except
in light of evolution." This quote emphasizes the role of
evolution as the most important unifying principle in
biology. Living things might, at first, seem very diverse,
but closer inspection reveals a surprising unity. This
unity, or common ancestry, can be explained by
evolutionary theory. With such an important theory at
stake, it is essential to understand the evidence upon
which it is based.
The Task
In this Evolution WebQuest students investigate a
variety of types of evidence for evolution. Each team
will be responsible for learning about fossil evidence,
structural evidence, and genetic evidence for evolution
and presenting this information to the class. The
Teacher assigns students to a group of six
researchers.
2. Each group will have specialists in anatomy and
physiology, paleontology, and molecular biology.
Anatomists study the structure of organisms and
physiologists study the function of organisms,
molecular biologists study genetics, and
paleontologists study fossils.
3. Students review the sites that apply to their
specialty.
4. Students find four to five examples of evidence for
evolution. Try to steer the students to specific evidence
or sites to have a variety presented in class. Also, have
students try to find the date on which the evidence was
discovered.
5. The recommended sites are just examples. Feel free
to recommend others.
See the Appendix for student activity page
Optional Assessment:
Students present webquest results to class in
their groups. Each student must submit his or
her personal research for credit.
Teacher Notes:
Explain how scientists construct and scientifically test theories concerning the origin of life and
evolution of species.
Are there patterns of similarity among organisms alive today? Are there relationships among organisms that
lived in the past and organisms alive today? Where did humans come from in the history of the world? What is
the evidence that might give us some clues to these questions? Many students come to the science classroom
with strongly held beliefs that don't allow them to openly examine the scientific explanations to these
questions. The challenge in the science classroom is to help students distinguish between a scientist's way of
thinking and understanding from those practiced by some theologians, poets, or philosophers.
Students need working definitions of key terms with clear examples to provide a framework for their thinking.
This should help them demarcate where science begins and ends. Words such as fact, theory, hypothesis,
and law are terms students encounter in casual conversation in everyday life. In science these terms have a
very specific meaning. A fact is an observation that has been repeatedly confirmed but facts can change. It
was a scientific fact for many years that human cells had 24 pairs of chromosomes. Improved techniques of
microscopy revealed that they actually have 23 pairs.
People commonly use the word theory to mean a "guess" or "hunch". "My theory is..." in common usage would
be better stated as "My hypothesis is....". In science, a hypothesis is a testable statement about the natural
world. A theory, in science, is a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world. It is a
powerful idea that represents our best explanation at this time. The abundance of supporting evidence makes
the subsequent abandonment of a theory unlikely. Theories can be continually refined and even replaced with
an alternative theory in light of new and compelling evidence.
Finally, laws are generalizations that describe phenomena whereas theories explain phenomena. The laws of
thermodynamics describe what will happen under certain circumstances; thermodynamic theories explain why
these events occur. A clear understanding of these terms should provide students the structure needed to
begin the study of evolution.
It is important for students to be able to distinguish between evolution and the proposed mechanism, which
accounts for its occurrence. Evolution is the historical change in life forms that is well substantiated and is
generally accepted as fact by scientists. Students should explore the similarities of vertebrate's limb structures
such as the forelimb of a chicken or bat, human, whale, cat, and lizard. They may also study similarities in the
early development of vertebrate embryos. Students need an opportunity to observe, from the fossil record,
kinds of organisms that once lived on earth but now are extinct such as the Petoskey stone's, Hexagonaria
percarinata, trilobites, or crinoids. They can examine the apparent relatedness of fossils to one another and to
organisms living today. This will begin to lay the groundwork for evidence of common ancestry.
Students are naturally drawn to questions of their own ancestry. Students can perform a simple comparison for
similarities and differences when given pictures or models of a gorilla, a modern human, and a hominid fossil
skull. Patterns will emerge as students discover intermediate traits and forms. Further study of the
relationships of humans to other selected animal groups can be done by looking at DNA and blood protein
similarities. Vestigial structures such as the appendix, tailbone, wisdom teeth, and ear muscles also give
evidence to common ancestry with selected animal groups.
Patterns and evidence of change, as well as recognizing the diversity and apparent relatedness of species,
needs to be firmly established before delving into possible mechanisms for evolution. To better understand
natural selection students can survey the examples of artificial selection occurring today with common pets like
cats and dogs, or numerous agricultural products.