• Circulate around the classroom as students are working on the laboratory activity and ensure that each student is involved in the activity.
• Listen to group discussions during both parts of the lesson to check for understanding of concepts.
• Collect and check the Rabbit Natural Selection Laboratory Activity packet and graph (S-B-9-1_Rabbit Natural Selection Laboratory KEY.doc).

Notes: Before the lesson, gather and prepare all materials for each lab group of two to three students for the laboratory activity. It will probably take students about 30 minutes to conduct the investigation, so introduce the lesson and hand out materials in the first 10 minutes of class.

This lesson requires prior knowledge of genotypes and dominant and recessive alleles.

Day 1

Begin the lesson by asking students what adaptations rabbits have for survival. If necessary, define adaptation. When students say that rabbits need fur to stay warm, tell them that rabbits with certain genes are born without any fur. Ask students why those rabbits are rare in the wild. Elicit that those rabbits are not likely to survive cold weather in the winter.

Divide students into the pre-determined lab groups. Distribute the handout and materials for Rabbit Natural Selection Laboratory Activity–Student Version (S-B-9-1_Rabbit Natural Selection Laboratory Activity-Student Version.doc). Read the introduction aloud with students and answer any questions that arise.

Have students conduct the laboratory activity through step 11. Students will complete the Analysis and Conclusions sections on Day 2.

Day 2

In the same lab groups as the previous day, have students make a T-chart with the headings “What Evolution Is” and “What Evolution Isn’t.” Have them brainstorm and write several ideas in each of the columns. Hold a brief class discussion and have several student volunteers share their groups’ ideas. The article “What Evolution Is Not/What Evolution Is” might be a helpful resource for guiding class discussion (S-B-9-1_What Evolution Is Not.docx, or the Web site link in Related Resources).

Explain the principles of natural selection. Optionally, give students copies of the Principles of Natural Selection (S-B-9-1_Principles of Natural Selection-Teacher Version.doc). Define fitness and give examples of “survival of the fittest.” Also, explain the differences between Jean-Baptiste Lamarck’s theory of acquired characteristics and Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection. Explain how Darwin’s observations and ideas changed scientific thinking about the evolution of species (see Related Resources).

Have students write definitions for hypothesis and theory in their own words.

In their lab groups, have students complete the analysis and conclusions sections of the Lesson 1: Rabbit Natural Selection Laboratory Activity.

Conclude the lesson by having each student draw a cartoon or comic strip to illustrate one of the principles of natural selection.

Extension:

• For students who may need opportunities for additional learning, guide them step-by-step through collecting data for the first “generation” in the laboratory activity. Also, guide them through creating the graph and plotting data. On the second day, it may be helpful to provide a list of concepts and have students determine whether they apply to natural selection or not.
• For students who are performing above and beyond the standards, have them add a question to the lab analysis: “Write a prediction about the gene frequency of the recessive allele after 100 generations.” Have students calculate the frequency using the Hardy-Weinberg equation.