Are physical characteristics or behaviours more important in human adaptation?
• List on the board all plants and animals which can be found in the vicinity of the schoolyard. Ask each group to pick one organism listed. For the organism they have selected, they should describe the behaviours and the physical characteristics which help the organism cope with its environment. Each group can share its findings and ideas with the whole class in the form of an oral presentation illustrated with one or more posters. Species identification is not critical labelling them as A, B, C, etc. would suffice. • Brainstorm a list of all migratory animals. The Resource Reader (being redeveloped) from Saskatchewan Natural Resources is a good source of information on migratory animals if the brainstormed list comes up short. Assign one animal to each pair of students in the class. Select animals so that a range of animals is allotted. (This is to avoid reports on the mallard, the canvasback, the green-winged teal, the blue-winged teal, the pintail, the wood duck, the shoveller, and
