• [History of life: Grades 9-12] Present-day species evolved from earlier species; the relatedness of organisms is the result of common ancestry. (LS4.A)
• [History of life: Grades 13-16] Present-day species evolved from earlier species; the relatedness of organisms is the result of common ancestry.
• [History of life: Grades 9-12] Life on Earth 3.8 billion years ago consisted of one-celled organisms similar to present-day bacteria.
• [History of life: Grades 13-16] Life on Earth 3.8 billion years ago consisted of one-celled organisms similar to present-day bacteria.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] The fossil record provides evidence for evolution.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] The fossil record documents the biodiversity of the past.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] The fossil record contains organisms with transitional features.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] There are similarities and differences among fossils and living organisms.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] Similarities among existing organisms provide evidence for evolution. (LS4.A)
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] Anatomical similarities of living things reflect common ancestry. (LS4.A)
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] There are similarities in the cell function of all organisms. (LS4.A)
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] All life forms use the same basic DNA building blocks. (LS4.A)
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 9-12] Developmental similarities of living things often reflect their relatedness. (LS4.A)
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 13-16] The fossil record provides evidence for evolution.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 13-16] The fossil record documents the biodiversity of the past.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 13-16] The fossil record contains organisms with transitional features.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 13-16] There are similarities and differences among fossils and living organisms.
• [Evidence of evolution: Grades 13-16] Similarities among existing organisms (including morphological, developmental, and molecular similarities) reflect common ancestry and provide evidence for evolution.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 9-12] Our knowledge of the evolution of living things is always being refined as we gather more evidence.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 9-12] Our understanding of life through time is based upon multiple lines of evidence.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 9-12] Scientists use the similarity of DNA nucleotide sequences to infer the relatedness of taxa. (LS4.A)
• [Studying evolution: Grades 9-12] Scientists use fossils (including sequences of fossils showing gradual change over time) to learn about past life.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 13-16] Our knowledge of the evolution of living things is always being refined as we gather more evidence.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 13-16] Our understanding of life through time is based upon multiple lines of evidence.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 13-16] Scientists use multiple lines of evidence (including morphological, developmental, and molecular evidence) to infer the relatedness of taxa.
• [Studying evolution: Grades 13-16] Scientists use fossils (including sequences of fossils showing gradual change over time) to learn about past life.

• Disciplinary Core Idea LS4.A: Evidence of Common Ancestry and Diversity

9-12 teaching tips

This lecture may be most useful for advanced high school biology courses. Clips of the lecture (now available as an indexed video with synchronized slides) might provide students with an experience similar to that of a first year college student. An interesting and useful exercise would be to have students watch the lecture (or part of it), take notes, and then process with classmates what the experience was like (both in terms of the content they learned and the way in which the lecture format challenged them to listen, absorb, and take notes).

13-16 teaching tips

Though originally developed for high school students, this lecture will also be useful for college students.

• Evidence for Evolution