Lesson TITLE and GRADE Level: Intro to Evolutionary History, 8th grade science

CA CONTENT STANDARDS or COMMON CORE STANDARDS:

CA NGSS:
LS4.A: Evidence of Common Ancestry and Diversity: Anatomical similarities and differences between various organisms living
today and between them and organisms in the fossil record, enable the reconstruction of evolutionary history and the inference
of lines of evolutionary descent. (MS-LS4-2)

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY

SL.7.1.C. Pose questions that elicit elaboration and respond to others' questions and comments with relevant observations and
ideas that bring the discussion back on topic as needed.

ISTE Standards for Students

3b. Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media

Global Education GPO:

I can ask testable scientific questions about a global issue. This means the questions help clarify or lead towards seeking additional
information. (IW)

Lesson OBJECTIVE:
1. The students will compare and contrast homologous structures to gather evidence about Evolutionary History.

21stCentury FLUENCY Skill: Information Fluency

MATERIALS List:
● Chromebooks (enough for 1-1)
● Plain copy paper (approximately 1 page per student)
● Unlined white paper in sheet protectors (1 per student)
● Dry erase markers (1 per student)
● Tissues/paper towels to erase dry erase “boards” (1 per student)

RECALL & REVIEW OF PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE (5 minutes):

● (Post agenda on the board. Posted on agenda is the students’ warm-up question which today is: Please use
your resources and define the following new vocabulary word: “homologous”, which is on Google classroom
for them to answer. Students are asked to use the new word in a sentence of their own.)
● (Take attendance by asking students to answer question also posted on the daily agenda. Call on student’s
one at a time and keep it short, no more than 2-3 minutes).

GAINING ATTENTION (2 mins) :

 ● Okay, class, I need all voices off in 3… 2… 1… (hold up fingers as you count down)
● Signal please. (Hold one hand up. Wait for all students to also hold a hand up and turn their voices off. )
● Thank you! (Thank specific students if you are waiting for others to comply. Once everyone is quiet, move on.)
You may put your hands down and keep your voices off.

RECALL & REVIEW OF PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE (2 minutes):

● (Review warm up question responses using a shoulder partner timed pair share.)
● Thank you for answering your warm up, now let’s review.
● Listen carefully. When I say “starfish”. You are going to, please, look at your shoulder partner. Put a big smile
on your face and say “I’m glad you’re here, partner”, then wait for my next instructions, which means you
have to be quiet.
● Got it? (Model as you repeat.)
● (Wait for students to follow instructions.)
● Excellent. Now, look down at your mat with your shoulder partner, when I say go,and the person who is
Partner A will hold their thumb up, nice and high in the air. (Wait for students and give feedback as necessary
to guide students, this should take no more than 15 seconds.)
● Starting with partner A, you will have 30 seconds to share what definition YOU found and how YOU used
this new word in a sentence.
● Then when the timer goes off you will switch and partner B will share while partner A listens.
● (Repeat and check for understanding until you feel confident. Project timer on board for visual.)
● Ready, starting with partner A, go!
● (Students share, float around room to monitor behavior, provide support and positive feedback.)
● Great work! Please high-five your shoulder partner and say “Thanks for sharing, partner!”
● (Provide feedback as necessary and repeat if students are not participating.)

INFORMING THE LEARNERS OF THE OBJECTIVES (2 minutes)

Today you will compare and contrast similarities between some animal skeletons and structures to gather evidence
about evolutionary history. This aligns with our GPO about asking testable
questions because at the end of class you will be creating a question that
we can test ABOUT evolutionary history.

RELEVANCY (1 minutes): Why should you care? Why does this

matter? (Show picture of man evolving from ape).
Well, You and I are here today because of evolution, so we are going
to study the history of evolution and the common shapes of different
body structures to help us understand just HOW we got here.
PRESENTING STIMULUS MATERIAL/ ELICITING THE DESIRED BEHAVIOR:
(35 minutes):
● You will notice that for today’s activity, each of you has a “whiteboard” and a whiteboard marker.
● I am also going to give you the following list of words on the board (write flying, grasping/manipulating,
swimming, walking/running on board for students and define words if necessary.)
● We will be using these whiteboards and markers during our “Numbered Heads Together” activity.
● You may remember from last time … (Review numbered heads together [the structure format/rules
are posted on a poster on the wall. Students will have practiced this before. {This is a Kagan
structure which can be found online if you want to review ahead of time.}])
● I am going to show you some Xrays of bone structures and you are going to have to write what you
think the structure is and how you think it is used SILENTLY to YOURSELF on your board.
● Then, when I say you can talk, that is when you will work as a group to decide what the structure is
and how the structure is used.
● You MUST come to consensus as a group. This means you must use your COMMUNICATION
skills to negotiate and agree on an answer as a group. Then I will call on a random person in your
group and you will share the answer with class.
● Remember, this is a safe place, and we celebrate mistakes and taking risks, so don’t be afraid to
share.
● (Pause and provide feedback if you notice students need it.)
● Let’s practice.
● (Show first slide, tell students to think SILENTLY and write down their answers SILENTLY. Project
30 second timer for students to see.)
● (Provide feedback and support as students do this activity silently.)
● Good, now you will have one minute to quietly put your heads together and come to consensus, or an
agreement about WHAT the structure and HOW it is used. I want everyone to write the consensus
answer on your board UNDER your original answer.
● Got that? (Provide feedback and answer questions as necessary)
● Ready… Go! (Project timer on board, float around and provide feedback and redirection as necessary.
If students need more or less time feel free to adjust time, just continue to project timer on board.)
● (Call out random number using Kagan mat, ask each “representative” to share with the whole class.
Erase boards and prepare for slide 2. After slides 2, 4, 6, and 8 ask students to formulate as a group a
question that would help clarify what they are seeing or what function the structure may have to
practice the GPO. Use 30 seconds to formulate question and then have them share for 30 seconds
each with shoulder or face partners.)
● (Continue this until slide 10. Provide feedback and redirection as necessary.)
● Pause at slides 2 and 3 and ask students to name 1 similarity they see between the first three
structures, and 1 difference they see with a face partner using a Timed Pair Share. (This should take
no more than 1 minute, provide feedback and encouragement as necessary.)
 ● (At slide 10): Great work, today. Give me a thumbs up if you observed that a lot of these structures
today seemed to look similar.
● We scientists call these structures homologous structures because they are similar in structure.
·
Independent Practice (5 minutes):
● Your last task for today, after you erase your boards and stack the boards and pens in the middle of
your desk is to answer the exit ticket posted on Edulastic.
● This is a tiny exit ticket based on the information you were able to gather today.

PROVIDING FEEDBACK/PROGRESS MONITORING: Provided throughout the lesson, see above.

DIFFERENTIATING STRATEGIES:
· ELL students will be strategically paired with students whom they are comfortable working with. The students
they are comfortable working with are the students who also speak Spanish and who frequently translate to help
their partner out. These students are academically higher than the ELL partner so they are able to be strong coaches
for ELL student.
· There are words written on the whiteboard that will be reviewed before the main activity starts. Chromebooks also
have a setting that will translate web pages for ELLs (for the Edulastic exit ticket).
· SPED students will be strategically paired with students whom they are comfortable working with who are
academically higher. These students are ones who are good teachers and leaders in class who make for excellent
partners to help support SPED needs.
· SPED students also have a full-time TA who is present to float around the room to provide extra help and support
in writing and mathematical calculations and well as providing other IEP accommodations.
· The TA and I will also be floating around the room to provide any additional support.
Both ELL and SPED students will benefit from the cooperative learning structure that asks them to formulate an
answer silently, share within a small group of 4, and then share with the whole class after they have formulated and
revised their answer within the small group setting.

ASSESSING the BEHAVIOR:

· Objective 1 will be informally assessed as I walk around the room and observe students working silently, in
groups, and when I call on them to present observations.
· Objective 1 will be formally assessed when students complete and submit the G. form exit ticket at the end of the
lesson. Student’s are expected to score 80% or more on the exit ticket.

Document all sources:

Google Documents students will use:

Slides of Animal Hands X Rays:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1n6FNw8YoEMLjg46HXlurfrLKyY050GVFJT7RqYYTTow/edit?us

p=sharing

Edulastic Exit Ticket Questions (Edulastic will not let me share the exit ticket but here are the questions I

am asking).

1. What does homologous mean when we talk about structures?

a. Being similar in structure b. Having the same parents c. Being different in structure d. When structures are

identical in shape and size

2. What is one thing that is similar with these structures?

a. The structures have similar connector bones b. The structures both have toes c. The structures both

have points d. The structures are not similar.

3. Compare and contrast the following picture: Please list at least 2 similarities and two differences

between the structures.

Answers will vary