Teacher Information Page

What is an iAdventure?	An iAdventure is an interactive site designed to have students research certain pieces of information by visiting other web sites in order to make informed decisions about various dilemmas presented.
Content Covered?	This iAdventure is designed for a Biology I high school course over the topic of Natural Selection. This has been designed to be an entire unit made into one large project.
Grade Level?	10th grade Biology I
Time?	7-10, 50 minutes classes
Resources	Preferably one computer per student, but could work in pairs, reference sheet, pencil & word processor program.

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Mystery at the Galapagos Islands

Opening Story: Darwin's Dilemma (Does he choose Iguanas or Finches?)

Iguanas

Finches

Iguanas made it to the island because of Plate tectonics

Iguanas made it to the island because of Ocean Currents

Finches made it to the island because of Plate tectonics

Finches made it to the island because of air currents

Conclusion

Background Information:

The opening story line deals with Charles Darwin first arriving in the Galapagos Islands. The captain of the ship informs Darwin he has one week to finish his research, this forces Darwin to make a tough decision: which animal does he focus his remaining days on. Darwin must choose between the mysterious and very ugly iguanas or the finches with many interesting and beautiful types of beaks. After the student helps Darwin decide which animal to focus his research on, their task has now begun. The student must research two different theories on how the animals first arrived in the Galapagos islands long ago. Once the student decides the method of arrival and has completed all reference sheets they will proceed to the conclusion page. As a final product, the student will put all of their information into a formal lab write-up.
All research links in this adventure open in a new window. When the student is finished viewing the information, they simply need to close the window to return to the same page they were on in the adventure.

Curriculum Objectives Covered:

1. Research how the structural and physiological adaptations of organisms relate to natural selection.

2. Distinguish among the types of evidences for evolution.

3. Summarize the effects of the different types of natural selection on gene pools.

4. Summarize the process of species formation.

Show-Me Standards

Goal 1:2 Conduct research to answer questions and evaluate information and ideas.
Goal 1:4 Use technological tools and other resources to locate, select and organize information
Goal 1:5 Comprehend and evaluate written, visual and oral presentations and works
Goal 1:7 Evaluate the accuracy of information and the reliability of its sources
Goal 1:8 organize data, information and ideas into useful forms (including charts, graphs, outlines) for analysis or presentation.

Goal 2:7 Use technological tools to exchange information and ideas

Goal 3:1 Identify problems and define their scope and elements
Goal 3:2 Develop and apply strategies based on ways others have prevented or solved problems

Goal 4:1 Explain reasoning and identify information used to support decisions

Science 4: changes in ecosystems and interactions of organisms with their environments
Science 5: processes (such as plate movement, water cycle, air flow) and interactions of earth’s biosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere
Science 7: processes of scientific inquiry (such as formulating and testing hypotheses)

Resources Needed:

Internet connected computers (maximum of 2 students per computer)
Reference sheets supplies by the instructor or printed off of the iAdventure (Opening story sheet, Finches, iguanas, plate tectonics, ocean currents, & air currents)
Pencil
Word Processor computer program

Assessment
Writing a Modified Formal Lab Report

You will create a formal lab report that is a modified version from an actual lab report. Your lab report is based off of the information you have gathered in this iAdventure. The lab write-up must contain the following information in this order (you may write these as headings in your report):
1. Background information- a couple of paragraphs stating the information needed to understand your lab report. (which decisions did you make?)
2. Hypothesis- this depends on your decisions made in the iAdventure
3. Procedure- there is none in this report because we did not run an experiment
4. Data- What information did you find out?
5. Analysis- What does this information mean? How does it apply to natural selection? How is it possible to form a new species?
6. Conclusion- Tie all this information together. In a conclusion you normally would state whether your hypothesis is right or wrong, but in this case you can not determine that since it is still a theory. So tell me why your hypothesis is the best explanation for natural selection of the animal you chose.

You will receive a grade based upon whether you filled out the reference sheets correctly, your participation during class, and the formal lab write-up. The scoring guide used to evaluate your participation in this iAdventure is shown below.

**Scoring Guide for Mystery at the Galapagos Islands**
Name:		Animal:		Method of arrival:
Elements Present	Incomplete	Poor	Average	Good	Excellent
Reference Sheets	0	27	32	36	45
Participation in Class	0	3	5	8	10
Overall appearance	0	2	3	4	5
Background	0	11	13	15	18
Hypothesis	0	11	13	15	18
Data	0	11	13	15	18
Analysis	0	11	13	15	18
Conclusion	0	11	13	15	18
					Total: /150

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Stan Smith for nudging me in the direction of this iAdventure. The objectives for this unit were written by Angie Sparks and Lisa Hill. Thank you to the following web sites for providing valuable information for this project: http://www.rit.edu/~rhrsbi/GalapagosPages/NewGalapagos.html
Galapagos On-line
United States Geological Survey (USGS)
NASA

The iAdventure concept was developed in the Warrensburg, MO school district, as part of the "Learning with iAdventures" program. This program was adapted for CMSU's MAT program. For more information on iAdventures, visit the Warrensburg School District's iAdventure Home Page.