Along with the pre/post assessment I gave them post lab questions to answer for homework. This allowed me to see if they really did understand the concept of mutations and adaptations. The first upload is a picture of his first side and the second is the picture of his backside of the assignment. Since this was the start to the unit the students walked into class and collected their formative assessment probe (this isabovet) and wrote “pre” on top to signify that this was pre-lesson and they had to answer the probe on adaptation. They put this away and I had a basket that was passed back and the students picked a letter. This letter signified their mutation. Then I posed a question, “What effect do mutations have on your ability to acquire food, consume food, and get away from your predator”? From there the students assembled their mutations and they went to their respective home in the room. Their food source was then pointed out and they had 5 minutes each round to “figure” it out. At the end I was able to assess them a couple of ways to see if they understood the aim of the activity. Again since this is the beginning of the unit I just wanted them to get the basics and then the next lessons would hone in on the more specifics of Natural Selection and Evolution. I could clearly see that this student made the connection between the inquiry lesson and the actual concept being taught. The common misconception has be addressed and fixed!
Last year I struggled with teaching evolution because my lessons were dry and full of a lot of reading. I usually do not teach this way and the students wanted me to go back to my old lesson delivery days, but I did not know how for this unit. I did not think of doing a science inquiry lesson until this course and I am so glad I did it! I did have a few students not make the connection but that is where I use my assessment data to drive my instruction for the next few days to reinforce the concept. But this was a better way to teach this part than last year!
