Four Factors of Evolution
Aligned to HS-LS4-2 — Next Generation Science Standards.
What this lesson teaches
Evolution by natural selection follows from four factors: organisms overproduce offspring, inherited traits vary, resources are limited, and individuals with helpful traits survive and reproduce more.
Worked example
Finches hatch more chicks than an island can feed; those with beaks suited to the available seeds survive, breed, and pass on that beak shape more often than the rest.
Practice questions
- List the four factors that together drive natural selection.
- Show how limited food combined with trait variation leads to different survival rates.
- Construct an explanation for how these four factors change a population's traits over generations.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
Cuatro factores de la evolución
La evolución por selección natural se deriva de cuatro factores: los organismos producen más descendencia de la que sobrevive, los rasgos heredados varían, los recursos son limitados y los individuos con rasgos ventajosos sobreviven y se reproducen más.
Ejemplo: Los pinzones incuban más polluelos de los que una isla puede alimentar; los que tienen picos adecuados para las semillas disponibles sobreviven, se reproducen y transmiten esa forma de pico con más frecuencia que los demás.
More HS-LS4 Biological Evolution lessons
Teach this lesson today
An AI tutor that guides with questions instead of just giving answers — all K–12 core subjects, every child in the family.
Start free — no card required