How I teach speciation (without PowerPoint)

Teaching about natural selection gives a mechanism for how species change but it doesn't directly address how one species can diverge into two. Speciation, then, needs its own lesson. This post shows you how I've taught it my IB biology (16–18) students.

Speciation—what will happen?

I didn't just tell students about speciation because meaning can't be transmitted. Instead, I provoked them with a difference; some variation. Below is the drawing I produced to begin the lesson. The students had learnt about natural selection and mutations previously, but they hadn't learnt about speciation.

🚨 Update: I've moved to a new home! You can read the newest, updated version of this article on my new website here: https://christianmooreanderson.com/how-i-teach-speciation/