Download Branching Activity Instructions:

Branching Activity Instructions:
 Open one textbook to p. 169. Clear table of other books, binders,
etc.
 Cut out shapes, roughly. No need to go into each small indentation.
Don’t cut on line. Cut outside of lines.
 With a partner, lay out shapes on paper in front of you.
 At bottom, start with the simplest shape.
 As the shape “evolves” into something more complex, place any
new shapes above the older version.
 Draw a branching tree to connect the shapes in a logical way, using
text as a guide.
 Glue shapes onto paper.
Rules (and hints) of “evolution”

Shapes don’t change as they “evolve” (ex. squares can’t evolve into
circles)

Shapes “evolve” by adding one new thing

A shape can “evolve” into more than one new thing. A branch can
have three prongs, like a fork.

If a shape “evolves” into more than one new shape, place these two
new shapes next to each other above the original shape.

In evolution, a “missing link” represents an evolutionary transition.
Evolution Branching Tree Activity Analysis
name
______________________
Refer to the Branching Tree below to answer the following questions:
What does the y-axis (vertical direction) represent? ______________________
Where on the branching tree is NOW? Top or bottom? ____________________
What would it mean if a species’ line stopped before it got to the top?
Which two species on the branching tree are the most closely related (have the
most in common with each other)?
Which two species have the least in common? ___________________________
Which species is the simplest? ________
How do you know? ________________________________________________
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Do species evolve to become more complex or less complex?
____________________
Answer the following questions based on the Branching Tree you put together.
In what ways does this activity model an actual evolutionary branching tree? Hint: In
what ways is this activity similar to a real situation?
________________________________________________________________________
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In what ways is this activity different from an actual evolutionary branching tree?
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Compare your branching tree to that of a neighbor’s.
Did you have the same solution or different?
Was there more than one way to logically arrange the shapes?
Explain how this relates to problems scientists have in interpreting DNA evidence to
figure the evolutionary relationships of species.
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How did you know you had a “missing link” and what to draw in for it?
________________________________________________________________________
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How does this “missing link” relate to what scientist might run into in real life
situations when they are trying to establish the evolution of a species?
________________________________________________________________________
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_
What evidence do scientists use to determine the relationships between species
when the scientists are trying to make a branching tree?
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