Week of 2/22

After preparing for and taking our evolution chapter test, our focus for the remainder of the week was to discover how scientists classify living organisms. We learned about the eight levels of classification (remember "Dear King Philip Came Over For Grape Soda?") and discussed how scientific names are formed. In our "Shape Island" activity, students had to assign organisms a scientific name based on their physical characteristics. Students had to use Latin and Greek roots, suffixes, and prefixes in order to design the scientific names of each.

Week of 2/14

Students completed their "Moth Lab" and took the chapter quiz early in the week. We finished the week by discussing other pieces of evidence that support the theory of evolution. We talked about the fossil record, geologic time scale, plate tectonics, vestigial structures, and comparing organism similarities by bone structure and order, embryotic structures, and DNA. In our lab, students practiced using relative fossil dating techniques to find the estimated age of different fossils. They had to arrange "rock samples" in order, based on their fossil components. We will be taking the Evolution chapter test on Tuesday!

Week of 2/7

Students presented their "designer animals" to the class on Monday. It was interesting to see the unique adaptations that students created for their animals! For the remainder of the week, we used examples to reinforce the idea of natural selection (white lizards, quiet crickets, resistant insects and bacteria, tuskless elephants, etc.). We even began a "peppered moth simulation lab" after the reviewing the controversial experiment that was done in Manchester, England with pale and dark peppered moths. Natural selection has taught us that if you have the best traits (like being camolflagued, in this case), you are likely to survive and pass your genes on to your offspring.

We will take a chapter quiz on Tuesday of next week, and then begin our final section in our evolution chapter.

Week of 1/31

Students did their final genetic disorder presentations on Monday and Tuesday. Overall, students did a great job on their projects! Projects will be graded and handed back by early next week.

On Friday, students were introduced to the concepts of adaptations, evolution, and natural selection. We discussed the voyage of Charles Darwin and the important discoveries that he made on the Galapagos Islands. Next week students will be required to create a "designer animal" that has the proper adaptations to survive in a unique environment.