The materials in this resource guide have been designed in accordance with the New Standards performance standards developed by the National Center on Education and the Economy and the University of Pittsburgh. The activities and Museum tour meet the following standards:

Life Science Concepts

The student demonstrates conceptual understanding by using a concept accurately to explain observations and make predictions and by representing the concept in multiple ways (through words, diagrams, graphs, or charts, as appropriate). Both aspects of understanding — explaining and representing — are required to meet this standard.

• Structure and function in living systems, such as the complementary nature of structure and function in cells, organs, tissues, organ systems, whole organisms, and ecosystems.
• Reproduction and heredity, such as sexual and asexual reproduction; and the role of genes and environment on trait expression.
• Regulation and behavior, such as senses and behavior; and response to environmental stimuli.
• Populations and ecosystems, such as the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers in a food web; and the effects of resources and energy transfer on populations.
• Evolution, diversity, and adaptation of organisms, such as common ancestry, speciation, adaptation, variation, and extinction.

Earth and Space Sciences Concepts

• Earth's history, such as Earth processes, including erosion and movement of plates; change over time and fossil evidence.

Scientific Connections and Applications

• Big ideas and unifying concepts, such as order and organization; models, form, and function; change and constancy; and cause and effect.

Scientific Thinking

The student demonstrates scientific inquiry and problem solving by using thoughtful questioning and reasoning strategies, common sense, and conceptual understanding from Science Standards 1 - 4, and appropriate methods to investigate the natural world.

• Uses concepts to explain a variety of observations and phenomena.
• Uses evidence from reliable sources to develop descriptions, explanations, and models.
• Proposes, recognizes, analyzes, considers, and critiques alternative explanations; and distinguishes between fact and opinion.
• Identifies problems; proposes and implements solutions; and evaluates the accuracy, design, and outcomes of investigations.
• Works individually and in teams to collect and share information and ideas.

Scientific Tools and Technologies

The student demonstrates competence with the tools and technologies of science by using them to collect data, make observations, analyze results, and accomplish tasks effectively.

• Uses technology and tools (such as traditional laboratory equipment, video, and computer aids) to observe and measure objects, organisms, and phenomena, directly, indirectly, and remotely.
• Acquires information from multiple sources, such as experimentation, print, the Internet, and computer databases.

Scientific Communication

The student demonstrates effective scientific communication by clearly describing aspects of the natural world using accurate data, graphs, or other appropriate media to convey depth of conceptual understanding in science.

• Represents data and results in multiple ways, such as numbers, tables and graphs, drawing, diagrams, and artwork; and technical and creative writing.
• Argues from evidence, such as data produced through his or her own experimentation or by others. Explains a scientific concept or procedure to other students.
• Communicates in a form suited to the purpose and the audience, such as writing instructions that others can follow; critiquing written and oral explanations; and using data to resolve disagreements.

Scientific Investigation

The student demonstrates scientific competence by completing projects drawn from the following kinds of investigations: controlled experiment; fieldwork; design; secondary research, such as the use of others' data; non-experimental research using print and electronic information, such as journals, video, or computers.

American Museum of Natural History
Department of Education
Central Park West at 79th Street
New York, NY 10024-5192

This guide was produced by the American Museum of Natural History Department of Education

Managing Editor: Karen Kane
Writer and Editor: Christine Economos
Design: Parlour Design, New York
Production Assistant: Rachael Woodruff
Consultant: Gene Gaffney, Curator, Department of Vertebrate Paleontology, AMNH
Reviewers: Donna Sethi and Jenny Herdman, AMNH
Photography: © AMNH Photo Studio

© 2000 American Museum of Natural History