Free Printable WorksheetScienceGrade 6Science CurriculumMS-LS4-4

6.97 Natural Selection and Adaptation Worksheet

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Worksheet Overview & Skills Covered

Core academic competencies and curriculum alignment

This Grade 6 Science worksheet provides structured practice on 6.97 Natural Selection and Adaptation. Students are guided through targeted exercises that build foundational understanding, computational accuracy, and critical thinking skills.

Natural Selection and Adaptation - Which diagram or model best shows natural selection and adaptation? (NGSS MS‑LS4‑4)

Whether you are an educator preparing classroom handouts, a tutor reinforcing weekly topics, or a parent supporting homeschool learning, this printable resource gives students the deliberate practice required to achieve subject fluency and master state standards.

Grade

Grade 6

Subject

Science

Domain

Science Curriculum

Formats

PDF & DOCX

Sample Practice Problems

Preview the types of problems and questions covered in this worksheet

Below are sample questions representative of the exercises included on this worksheet and related 6.97 Natural Selection and Adaptation skill assessments:

Problem 1Difficulty: Mastery

Study the multi-panel model of mice on dark rock, including fur-color frequencies, hawk predation, and a gene variant passed to offspring over four generations. Which explanation best matches all of the evidence?

AHawks taught the mice which fur color they should have before each generation began.

BAn inherited fur-color variant improved camouflage on dark rock, so mice with that variant survived hawk attacks more often and passed it to more offspring over generations.

CThe gene variant became common only because mice with the trait were larger, not because of camouflage or reproduction.

DThe dark rock changed each mouse's genes during life, and those changes were copied into offspring.

Solution & Explanation:This explanation uses all parts of the model: inherited variation, environmental pressure, differential survival, inheritance, and change in population frequency over time.

Problem 2Difficulty: Mastery

Why is offspring resemblance by itself not enough to prove that a trait is an adaptation?

AOnly noninherited traits can ever be adaptations.

BAll inherited traits are adaptations, so resemblance already proves the claim.

CA trait can be inherited without improving survival or reproduction in the environment.

DResemblance matters only in plants and not in animals.

Solution & Explanation:To call a trait an adaptation, scientists need more than heritability. They also need evidence that the trait improves fitness in a specific environment.

Problem 3Difficulty: Mastery

After a hurricane, all surviving island birds have shorter wings than the birds measured before the storm. What extra evidence is still needed before scientists can claim an adaptation is evolving?

AScientists need only a photograph of one bird with short wings before the storm.

BScientists need to know whether the birds also have short tails.

CScientists need proof that storms happen on islands every year.

DScientists still need evidence that shorter wings are inherited and that birds with shorter wings leave more offspring in later generations.

Solution & Explanation:One survival event is not enough to show adaptation evolving. The trait must be heritable and linked to future reproductive success.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about printing, using, and solving this worksheet

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QWhat grade level and standards does this worksheet align with?

This worksheet is designed specifically for Grade 6 Science students. It aligns with educational standard MS-LS4-4 (Primary standard selected for prompt fields in this prompt cell: NGSS MS-LS4-4. Skill statement in this prompt cell: Which diagram or model best shows natural selection and adaptation? Associated standards listed with this skill in this prompt cell: NGSS MS-LS4-4. Use this prompt-provided wording as the supporting standard description for this workflow.).