Rediscover life’s complex evolution using paleoscience! These five middle and high school adaptations introduce students to recent scientific findings and their implications for present-day organisms. Traverse through the human genome, map species range shifts, and uncover mummies’ microbiome with these featured teen-friendly activities. Use standards-matched adaptations, introductory video content, comprehension questions, and vocabulary to further your lesson outcomes. View the full collection here, or scroll down to learn about the featured articles.
1. What can ancient DNA tell us about the Stone Age people?
Archaeologists digging in Bulgaria found bones from people who lived 45,000 years ago. We wanted to know what these people’s DNA could tell us about where their ancestors came from and where their descendants ended up.
This article meets high school standards: NGSS HS-LS4
2. How can we find out about ancient Egyptian germs?
Microbes are everywhere on Earth. The organisms living on you are called your microbiome. Your microbiome is important for your health. We wanted to know if we could use DNA to learn about the microbiome of mummified ancient Egyptian people using a new technique that matches up broken pieces of DNA.
This article meets high school standards: NGSS HS-LS4
3. Where did flying reptiles come from?
Pterosaurs were the first vertebrates that were able to fly by flapping their wings. Have you ever wondered how flight evolved? How did organisms get their wings? By studying fossils and their similarities to present day species, we can answer these and many other questions.
This article meets high school standards: NGSS HS-LS4
4. Where did the first people in the Caribbean come from?
The first modern humans evolved in Africa around 200,000 years ago, but it wasn’t until 6,000 years ago that people moved into the Caribbean for the first time. We wanted to use ancient DNA to find out where these people came from.
This article meets high school standards: NGSS HS-LS4
5. When did bison arrive in North America?
Did you know that the North American bison, also known as the American buffalo, was once an immigrant? Its ancestors migrated from Asia. But when? We recovered and dated new fossils and extracted their ancient DNA to find out.
This article meets school standards: NGSS MS-LS2, HS-LS2
That’s Not All!
Our site offers hundreds of scientific articles, some of them about paleoscience, evolution, and physical science. Everything is free to download and use! Try the filter to find the ones you need.
