Mississippi Science ZOO.1.3

ScienceGrades 9–12Zoology I and II

The Standard

Recognize that the classification of living organisms is based on their evolutionary history and/or similarities in fossils and living organisms.

2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Evolution

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students compare traits in living animals and fossils. They use shared traits to group animals and place them on a branching family tree.
What Mastery Looks Like: Given pictures and a trait chart, a student can place a fossil near its living relatives and point to the evidence. They can explain that close relatives share a more recent common ancestor, even when they look different.
Common Misconceptions: Students may group whales with fish because both swim. They may also assume every fossil is a direct ancestor, or that one shared feature proves two animals are close relatives.
How to Assess It: Show pictures of a pigeon, a lizard, and an Archaeopteryx fossil. Ask: “Which living animal is more closely related to Archaeopteryx? What feature supports your answer?”

Lesson moves

Give groups pigeon, lizard, and Archaeopteryx image cards; have them mark feathers, teeth, and wings, then place the cards on a branching tree.
Ask partners, “Why is a whale grouped with mammals, not fish?” Have them compare whale, cat, and fish skeleton pictures.
Play “place the fossil”: give pairs a tree labeled lizard and pigeon, then have them place Archaeopteryx using its feathers and teeth.
Show whale and bat skeleton photos; have students write a museum label explaining why their forelimbs contain the same bones despite different jobs.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to ZOO.1.3, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

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