Natural Selection and Survivability

Teacher: Ms. Ashley Marcin

Grade: 8th
Unit Title: Life Science
I.

II.

III.

IV.
V.

Subject: Science

Synopsis of Unit
The differences and similarities between living things are the subject of this unit.
The student will learn how living things are classified based on their
characteristics, and how these characteristics help living things survive. They will
learn how populations of organisms adapt to changes in the environment. They
will also learn how fossils provide information about living things of the past.
Finally, students will learn about environmental problems and solutions.
Allen, K. Z. (2010). Tennessee Holt science and technology. Teacher's ed. S.l.:
Holt McDougal.
a. Lesson Title: Classification
b. Lesson Sequence: a) Introductory b) Sequential c) Culminating d) Review
Tennessee State Standards:
a. GLE 0807.5.3 Analyze how structural, behavioral, and physiological
adaptations within a population enable it to survive in a given environment.
b. GLE 0807.5.4 Explain why variation within a population can enhance the
chances for group survival.
Teachers Instructional Objectives:
a. Identify the characteristics within a population that allow it to survive in its
environment.
b. Determine if variation is helpful or a hindrance in different situations.
Assessment:
a. Lab worksheet will indicate the students logic behind what organisms can
survive different disasters.
Procedures:
a. Set/Motivation:
i. A video or activity on survivability, preferably on surviving a disaster.
Recommended: Sepups Natural Selection simulator
http://sepuplhs.org/high/sgi/teachers/evolution_act11_sim.html
b. Instruction:
i. Teaching Strategies
1. Provide notes on Natural Selection (speciation, generation
time, adaptation, etc), such as the PowerPoints transcript
supplied below in the Materials section. For students that
require notes, print off transcript or make a notes sheet with the
key terms cut out (the student will fill these in during the notes
portion of the lesson).
2. The teacher will circulate during supervised practice and assist
students with their questions. It is important that students
understand there is no one right answer, as long as they use
logic to reach it.

ii.

iii.

iv.

v.

vi.

3. The activity requires a worksheet. Make sure instructions are

clear and students have sufficient space to record their answers.
Checking for Understanding
1. The key component in understanding what students understand
will be the Survival of the Chocolates worksheet. All answers
are subjective and, as long as the students justify their answers,
will provide the teacher a medium to identify whether or not a
student understands the concept of natural selection.
2. During the activity, the teacher can also determine what the
students are struggling with if they keep asking the same
question repeatedly.
3. Provide a quiz on Natural Selection and its vocabulary. Have
the students describe each component in their own words.
Supervised Practice
1. Survival of the Chocolates worksheet. Make sure to assign
different traits to different color candy-coated chocolates.
Provide the students with a consecutive list of scenarios, both
natural and human-facilitated disasters. Students are to identify
what colors will survive and die at each step, and must use
logic and complete sentences to explain why those colors died,
if any.
Independent Practice
1. Have the students identify an organisms adaptations. They
should include what the organism does/looks like in order to
survive. The student should write a short paragraph on why this
adaptation is beneficial and what it could mean for future
generations.
Closure Summary
1. Discuss what chocolates survived and why. Students should be
able to incorporate vocabulary and logic to justify their
answers.
Alternative and/or Supplemental Activities
1. Enrichment
a. Research a recently discovered adaptation. Find some
form of evidence that the organism was different and
what it is like now and why. Cite all sources. Sources
should come from reputable scientific organizations and
should be appropriate.
2. Reteach/Remediation
a. Discuss Punnett squares if the students are having
trouble connecting generation time with adaptations.
b. Have students who understand natural selection talk to
those that might not. Cooperative learning can be
beneficial in these situations.
3. Accommodations/Modifications

a. Provide those that need it notes with blanks to fill out

during PowerPoint or instruction.
b. Write the instructions on worksheet and read them
aloud.
VI.

Materials/Media
a. Candy-coated chocolates
b. Paper towels

PowerPoint Transcript
Natural Selection in Action
Chapter 4, Section 3
Bellringer
What are two examples of how natural selection can result in an adaptation that helps an
organism survive?
Changes in Populations
The theory of natural selection explains how a population changes in response to its
environment. Those well-adapted to their environment have a better chance of surviving
and reproducing.
Changes in Populations
Adaptation to Hunting
Organisms will adapt to other stressors like hunting, such as tusk-less elephants.
Hunters do not go for elephants that do not have valuable ivory tusks, so those
born without are more likely to survive.
Changes in Populations
Insecticide Resistance
To control pests many people use insecticides
A few insects in a population are resistant to the chemical
These insects survive and reproduce
Generation time is the average time between one generation and the next. If an
insect has a short generation time, this means that the insects produce many
offspring rapidly.
Changes in Population
Changes in Populations
Competition for Mates
Survival of individuals does not guarantee survival of a species. For a species to survive,
its members must reproduce. Natural selection works based on reproduction. For
organisms that reproduce sexually, competition for mates can select for adaptations.
Forming a New Species
Drastic changes can form a new species.
A species is a group of organisms that can mate with each other to produce fertile
offspring.
A new species may form after a group forms a new population.
Eventually, the new population and the original differ to the point where they can no
longer mate.
The formation of a new species as a result of change over time is called speciation.
Forming a New Species

Separation
Speciation often begins when a part of a population becomes separated from the
rest.
Ex: a newly formed canyon, a mountain range, or a lake can divide a population.
Forming a New Species
Adaptation
Natural selection continues to act on the groups after they have separated.
Over generations, groups may develop different sets of traits.
Environmental conditions can cause the groups new adaptations to differ.
Division
Even if two separated groups are reunited, they may no longer be able to
interbreed, which means they are no longer the same species.
This can be seen where different species breed at different times of the year.
Section Summary
Natural selection can result in an adaptation that helps an organism survive.
Natural selection explains how one species changes into another.
Speciation occurs as populations undergo separation, adaptation, and division.
LAB
VERY IMPORTANT: Follow all instructions carefully
If you cannot, you will not participate
Survival of the Chocolates
1. CLEAN YOUR TABLE
2. GET A NAPKIN AND A HANDOUT FROM THE BACK TABLE
3. GET A BAGGIE FROM MS. ASHLEY
4. DO NOT OPEN BAGGIE
5. DO NOT EAT ANYTHING (yet!)
Survival of the Chocolates
Imagine a world populated with candy, and hold that delicious thought in your head for
just a moment. Try to apply the idea of natural selection to a population of candy-coated
chocolates. According to the theory of natural selection, individuals who have favorable
adaptations are more likely to survive. In the species of candy-coated chocolates that
you will study in this experiment, the characteristics of individual chocolates may help
the chocolates survive. Each chocolate is divided by color to represent certain
characteristics. In the table, sort and organize your chocolates and record how many of
each are in each square.
Survival of the Chocolates
Question 1 is going to be your hypothesis.
Complete each question using your own candies.
DO NOT EAT THE CHOCOLATES (yet!)
If you believe that a disaster kills all or part of a specific color, record that in your
answer! Remove the dead organisms from your squares.
Bonus (write the answer at the bottom of the last page):
The population lost members based on what characteristics the different chocolates had. Because
different traits were lost due to all these events, only a few traits remain to be passed on. What is
this called? (Bottlenecking)

Survival of the Chocolates

Imagine a world populated with candy, and hold that delicious thought in your head for just
a moment. Try to apply the idea of natural selection to a population of candy-coated
chocolates. According to the theory of natural selection, individuals who have favorable
adaptations are more likely to survive. In the "species" of candy-coated chocolates that you
will study in this experiment, the characteristics of individual chocolates may help the
chocolates "survive." Each chocolate is divided by color to represent certain characteristics.
In the table below, sort and organize your chocolates and record how many of each are in
each square.

Yellow
____

Orange
____

Red
____

Terrestrial, Omnivore,
adapt well to change,
hardest shells in the
population

Amphibious, Carnivore,
strong, do not do well
with change, need
some form of water to
survive

Green
____

Blue
____

Brown
____

Live in trees,
Vulnerable to
predators, Nonmigratory

Aquatic, cannot live

without water,
vulnerable to
predators, weakest
shells in the population

Terrestrial, herbivore,
vulnerable to predators

Migratory, Possess the

ability to fly, adapt
easily to changing
environmental
conditions

Total number of chocolates: ____

Survival of the Chocolates
Answer the following questions in complete sentences:
1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Which color chocolate do you think can survive the most

disasters? Why?
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
Earthquake! The local dam bursts and drains the lake.
What color chocolate does not survive this disaster and
why? How many chocolates are left in the community?
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
The local newscaster predicts a drought to begin within a
week. What color chocolates are vulnerable to drought
and may not survive without any water? All but one of
these die.
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
Forest fire! The drought has caused the vegetation to dry
out and catch fire. The green population suffers: there are
no trees to live in, so they must live on the ground, where
they are vulnerable to predators. They quickly die out.
Because the forest fire destroyed a lot of vegetation, the
herbivores dont have anything to eat and half of them die
out. What does this mean for the remaining color
chocolates?
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________

6.

Due to the lack of plants, locals have decided to fertilize

the remaining plants to make them stronger. What will the
fertilizer do to the water? (hint: what grows in an aquatic
environment with too many nutrients?)
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
7.
Because of the extra nutrients, the plants are growing
well and the remaining animals seem to be doing well.
Actually, too well. The bugs are taking over and
destroying the new life, so locals spray pesticides on the
plants. This kills off half of the remaining brown
population. Why do the pesticides kill off what ingests it,
and what could cause half the population to survive?
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
8.
With so few of its prey left, the red population does not
have enough to eat. Half of their population dies. (if there
was only one left, then that red dies and there are no
more reds left in your population).
9.
The yellow population can no longer survive in this
environment. What happens to them? Are there any
behavioral adaptations that can influence this?
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
10. Phew, everything has levelled out. The lake is starting to
fill back up and the forest is beginning to grow again.
What color chocolates survived? What behaviors and
characteristics allowed them to survive?
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________

______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
11. How many chocolates are left? _____
12. What percent survived? _________
Remaining # of chocolates
Total # of chocolates

x 100

Bonus: The population lost members based on what

characteristics the different chocolates had. Because different
traits were lost due to all these events, only a few traits remain to
be passed on. What is this called? ______________________