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Discuss: Suppose you want to get bluer iguanas. Which iguana should you pick to have babies with your iguana? Iguana

Reveal answer

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Discuss: Now that you know how the first small dog breed was created, how do you think we created big dogs, like the Great Dane? GreatDane

Reveal answer

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Discuss: How do you think life was different for people before they discovered selection and created all these different breeds of animals (dairy cows, muscular cows, chickens that lay big eggs)?

Reveal answer

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Discuss: What’s an animal or trait you might like to see in the future? If you want to know what we'd like to see, click "Reveal Answer" below.

Reveal answer

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Designer Dogs Question #1 of 4:

cockerspaniel-poodlequestion

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Designer Dogs Question #2 of 4:

pug-beaglequestion

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Designer Dogs Question #3 of 4:

germanshepherd-lab-question

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Designer Dogs Question #4 of 4:

schnauzer-Pom-question

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Designer Dogs Answer #1 of 4:

cockerspaniel-poodleanswer

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Designer Dogs Answer #2 of 4:

pug-beagleanswer

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Designer Dogs Answer #3 of 4:

germanshepherd-lab-answer

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Designer Dogs Answer #4 of 4:
schnauzer-Pom-answer

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Anchor Connection In the past lesson, you learned that animals can have different characteristics even if they are the same kind of animal. Discuss. How are these iguanas different from each other? And how are these dogs different from each other? Look for as many differences as you can.

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These ants are actually the same kind of ant. They are also all adult ants. None of these are baby ants. Discuss. What differences do you notice? Why do you think they look so different?

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One ant is much larger and it has wings. The other ants are much smaller and don’t have wings. Even though all of these ants are the same kind of ant, you can see many differences between them.

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But all of these ants don’t just look different. They also do very different things. You might already know that the ant with wings is a queen ant, and that she has a special job. Discuss. What do you think the large ant does that makes her special?

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Within an ant colony, different ants have different jobs. Some (but not all) of the jobs of each kind of ant are shown below. Discuss. How do you think it helps ants survive if they have different jobs?

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The worker ants don’t have to worry about laying eggs, so they can focus on taking care of all of the ants in the nest, including the queen. The queen doesn’t need to worry about finding food, so she can focus on laying eggs.

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By focusing on different jobs and working together, the ants help each other survive. People do this, too!

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Step
01/03

Get your Amazing Ants worksheet.

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Step
02/03

Many ants have different jobs. This helps them survive in many different places. As a class, discuss different ways that you can update your notes with this information. Then, update your notes.

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Step
03/03

Save your Amazing Ants worksheet. You will update it after the next lesson in this unit.

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Look at the "Wonder" column of your class See-Think-Wonder chart. Have any questions been answered by this lesson?

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Extend this lesson

Vocabulary

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# Extensions

Below are ideas for extending this topic beyond the activity & Exploration which you just completed.

Lesson Assessment and Answer Key
Reading: Friendly Foxes tells of a research project to make foxes that are as friendly as dogs.
Activity: Spot the differences , an exercise in observation and writing.
Online videos: Watch an excerpt from Naturethat shows how the Bedouin people bred fast-running dogs to create the Saluki, the fastest dog in the world.

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trait

1 of 7

something you can observe about a living thing, such as the pointy ears of a dog

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generation

2 of 7

all the living things born and living at around the same time

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variation

3 of 7

the different versions of a trait, such as the size of a dog

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artificial selection

4 of 7

the process of humans choosing certain traits of living things so that they are passed to the offspring

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inherited trait

5 of 7

a trait of a living thing that comes from its parents

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species

6 of 7

one specific kind of living thing that has similar characteristics and can produce offspring with one another

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extinct

7 of 7

a type of living thing that once lived on Earth but no longer exists

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Image & Video Credits

Mystery Science respects the intellectual property rights of the owners of visual assets. We make every effort to use images and videos under appropriate licenses from the owner or by reaching out to the owner to get explicit permission. If you are the owner of a visual and believe we are using it without permission, please contact us—we will reply promptly and make things right.

Exploration

cat by Joseph Morris , used under CC BY-ND

dog by Katherine , used under CC BY

goat by ceridwen , used under CC BY-SA

sheep by Donald Macleod

T-Rex in museum by Jeff Kubina , used under CC BY-SA

wild cat by Chris Fourie

domestic fox by Raffaele Esposito

holding fox by Jorbasa Fotografie , used under CC BY-ND

mammoth by WolfmanSF , used under CC BY-SA

yawning fox by Peter Trimming , used under CC BY

hippo-fish by Takeshi Kitano's

long haired cat by Tambako The Jaguar , used under CC BY-ND

rooster by David Goehring , used under CC BY

dogs of the world by Poster Revolution

Black Lab by Jared and Corin , used under CC BY-SA

Blood Hound by Sally Wehner , used under CC BY

Bull Dog by sabianmaggy , used under CC BY

Chihuahua by Kevin , used under CC BY

Pitbull by Hugo A. Quintero G. , used under CC BY

small white dog by tiarescott , used under CC BY

rooster skeleton by Chickenosaurus 12

bird-like skeleton by Ted & Tira

cows by barn by William Garrett , used under CC BY

chickenosaurous by guest_5655

cow close up by Positive

bears by Tambako The Jaguar , used under CC BY-ND

black bull by Jaap Rouwenhorst , used under CC BY-SA

giraffe up close by Tambako The Jaguar , used under CC BY-ND

teddy bear by thepeachpeddler , used under CC BY-SA

bright green lizard by Chad Sparkes , used under CC BY

udders by stux

dairy cow by Keith Weller/USDA

oxen pulling cart by John P. Mosesso

iguana by Pete Markham , used under CC BY-SA

ox up close by TrollGod14337

iguana up close by Cyborg , used under CC BY

wild boar by Pete Shacky

cat by Magnus Bråth , used under CC BY

chicken and eggs by Dew Tyme Family Farm

horse by Paul VanDerWerf , used under CC BY

pig by Brent Moore , used under CC BY

Basset Hound by patchattack , used under CC BY-SA

Bichon Frise by Jeffrey Beall , used under CC BY-SA

Chow Chow by Prayitno , used under CC BY

German Sheperd by Marilyn Peddle , used under CC BY

Greyhound by Marianne Perdomo , used under CC BY-SA

Siberian Husky by S.McWilliam

Cocker Spaniel by Norman Mackenzie

Dachshund by Hugo Daniel

Labrador by Kevin Rodriguez Ortiz , used under CC BY

Rottweiler by El Coleccionista de Instantes , used under CC BY-SA

horses running by hlseffigy , used under CC BY-ND

poodle by chuck_heston , used under CC BY-SA

Chinese Emperor by Royal Academy of Arts

Pekingese by CH PalaceGarden Malachy

small dog by Helmuts R , used under CC BY-SA

Great Dane by Jon Hurd