TITLE OF LESSON PLAN:

Apes to Man
LENGTH OF LESSON:
Two class periods
GRADE LEVEL:
6-8
SUBJECT AREA:
Animals
CREDIT:
Lisa Lyle Wu, science teacher, at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and
Technology, in Alexandria, Virginia.
OBJECTIVES:
Students will understand the following:
1. Primates (e.g., monkeys and apes, such as chimpanzees and gorillas) in the African
savannas, or grasslands, were the first animals in evolutionary history to exhibit
bipedalism, or the ability to walk on two feet.
2. About 3.5 million years ago in Africa, the first hominidsappearedbipedal primates
who walked erect. Those early hominids were the ancestors of recent humans.
3. The ability to walk erect gave hominids greater speed, stamina, and agility, and
therefore a better chance for survival in the African savannas, or treeless plains.
4. The ability to walk erect is considered a milestone in human evolution because it
allowed for the use of arms and enabled the production of complex sounds necessary for
human speech.

MATERIALS:
For this lesson, you will need:

Computer with Internet access or a videotape player and videotapes of primates such as
monkeys and chimpanzees walking

PROCEDURE:
1. Share the following background material with your students: Primates (e.g., monkeys
and chimpanzees) in the African savannas, or grasslands, were the first animals in
evolutionary history to exhibit bipedalism, or the ability to walk on two feet.
2. Tell the class that they are going to observe and analyze the way human beings walk
and compare human walking with that of other bipedal primates (monkeys or apes, such
as chimpanzees and gorillas).
3. Have several volunteers demonstrate typical human walking by walking up and down
several times in front of the class.
4. Each student should make a written list of observations of the demonstration. Suggest
that students include posture as well as foot, leg, and arm motions in their observations.
(Note: You may want to remind students that they are making scientific observations and
caution them not to include any inappropriate or judgmental remarks in their
descriptions.)
5. Have students watch a demonstration of at least one other type of primate walkinga
monkey, gorilla, or chimpanzee. The class could watch a video, or download QuickTime
videos about apes from a Web site such as the following:
http://night.primate.wisc.edu/pin/images.html.
6. Each student should make a written list of observations similar to the ones they made
for the human walking demonstration.
7. After students have completed their observations, hold a class discussion to compare
and contrast human walking with the walking of the other primate observed.

8. Conclude the discussion by telling the class that about 3.5 million years ago in Africa,
the first hominidsappearedbipedal primates who walked erect. Those early hominids
were the ancestors of recent humans.
9. Next, have the class assign ratings based on their observations. They should rate both
primates for speed, stamina, and agility based on a system of 0 (very low) to 10 (very
high). Students should conclude that humans rate higher than other primates.
10. Finally, hold a wrap-up discussion with the class, or have students form small
discussion groups to talk about why hominids had a better chance for survival on the
African savannas, or treeless plains, than earlier primates. Students should conclude that
without trees to climb, the ability to run quickly over long distances was more important
for survival than the ability to brachiate, or use arms to swing through the tree branches
in a forest habitat.
11. Tell students that, in addition, the ability to walk erect (without bending over or
touching the ground with the hands) is considered a milestone in human evolution
because it allowed for the use of arms for other purposes. Also, erect posture enabled the
production of complex sounds necessary for human speech.

ADAPTATIONS:

Adaptations for Older Students:

Invite older students to do research to discover what geologic and climatic changes on
Earth caused the transition from forest to savanna on the African continent. Have them
write reports that include their ideas on how changes on Earth brought about changes in
primate development.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Discuss some traits of primates that distinguish them from other mammals.
2. Discuss the significance of the discovery of Lucy.
3. Discuss the universality of DNA and how this molecular data can be used to construct
family trees.

4. Explain the geologic events and the consequences created by the formation of the
Great Rift valley.
5. Explain how human behavior is different from the behavior of other animals.
6. Why are primate fossils rare?
EVALUATION:
You can evaluate your students on their observations and conclusions using the
following three-point rubric:
- Three points:observations careful and complete; comparisons and contrasts careful
and complete; conclusions and answers show creative thinking.
- Two points:adequate observations; adequate comparisons and contrasts; conclusions
and answers need more thought.
- One point:adequate observations; inadequate comparisons and contrasts; inadequate
conclusions and answers
You can ask your students to contribute to the assessment rubric by determining how
many observations should appear on each list and by establishing criteria for wellthought-out answers and conclusions.
EXTENSION:
Presenting . . . The Primates
Encourage students to narrow down and research one of the topics below. Divide the
class into groups of five or six. Have them present their findings in a 10-minute oral
group presentation:.
1. Tools and tool use by early hominids up to Homo sapiens
2.

Culture of early hominids up to Homo sapiens

3.

Neanderthals

4.

Who's who on the Homo sapiensfamily tree

5.

Life of one of the prosimians

6.

Life and culture of one of the monkeys

7.

Life and culture of one of the great apes

8.

Challenges to the preservation of nonhuman primates in the wild

9.

Primates in captivity

Comparing Hands
Using a human skeleton, have students compare the anatomy of the hand to either a
skeletal hand of another primate or pictures of a nonhuman primate skeleton. Students
should make detailed sketches of wrist and hand bones of the human and nonhuman
primate with the following labels: thumb, finger, wrist bones. When the sketches are
complete, have students compare them and answer the following questions:
How do the hands differ?
What do bones suggest about strength and dexterity?

Apes to Man

SUGGESTED READINGS:
Lucy and Her Times
Pascal Picq and Nicole Verrechia. Henry Holt, 1996.
This pictorial reference includes information about early fossil hunters, prehistoric Africa,
the history of evolution, early hominids, the geography and weather of prehistoric Africa,
and comparisons between modern apes and humans.
The Great Apes: Our Face in Nature's Mirror
Michael Leach. Blandford, 1996.
Contained in this work are intriguing comparisons of human and ape behavioral and
cultural adaptations.
WEB LINKS:

Connections: Primates
Teacher guides, lesson plans, activities, and a gallery of images and sounds. Science
content standards are listed.
http://www.mcrel.org/resources/plus/pan.asp
African Primates at Home
Contains photos, sounds, and information. Suitable for grades
K-12.
http://www.indiana.edu/~primate/primates.html
Chimpanzee Resources
Internet links to chimpanzee resources, including the Jane Goodall Institue and Research
Center, ChimpanZoo (a research project), and other anthropological/primtology links.
http://www.wcsu.ctstateu.edu/cyberchimp/Chimp.html
Primate Info Net: Primate Image Resources
Photographs and Quicktime videos about apes, including gorillas, chimpanzees,
orangutans, gibbons, etc. Some images are copyright cleared; some require copyright
permission to download.
http://night.primate.wisc.edu/pin/images.html
Primate Info Net: Curriculum
Classroom activities, including the 4 Great Apes card game; primate crossword puzzle;
Gorillas classroom learning activities; and rainforest unit.
http://night.primate.wisc.edu/pin/curr.html
VOCABULARY:
anthropoid
Humanlike. (Note: Anthropoidea is a suborder of primates.)
Context:
Higher primates (more advanced) such as monkeys, chimps, and humans are known
collectively as anthropoids.
bipedalism
The condition of having two feet or of using only two feet for locomotion.
Context:
Humans and chimps exhibit bipedalism when walking.
brachiating
To progress by swinging from one hold to another by the arms.
Context:
In trees, brachiating is a more efficient form of locomotion than bipedalism.

genetic maps
The arrangement of genes on a chromosome.
Context:
Genetic maps can show evolutionary relationships.
hominid
Any of a family (Hominidae) of erect, bipedal, primate mammals comprising recent
humans together with extinct ancestral and related forms.
Context:
One of the earliest signs of human arrival is hominid imprints dating back 3.5 million
years.
niche
The ecological role of an organism in a community, especially in regard to food
consumption.
Context:
Ecological niches were filled with a variety of primates.
savanna
A treeless plain.
Context:
A savanna is a tropical grassland with seasonal rainfall and drought and adapted scattered
bushes and other plants.
tectonic
Relating to crustal motion along fault lines.
Context:
Major tectonic activity shook the continent.
ACADEMIC STANDARDS:
Grade Level:
9-12
Subject Area:
science
Standard:
Understands the nature of scientific inquiry.
Benchmarks:
Understands the nature of scientific explanations (e.g., emphasis on evidence; use of
logically consistent arguments; use of scientific principles, models, and theories;
acceptance or displacement based on new scientific evidence).
Grade Level:

9-12
Subject Area:
life science
Standard:
Understands the basic concepts of evolution of species.
Benchmarks:
Knows that natural selection leads to organisms that are well suited for survival in
particular environments, so that when an environment changes, some inherited
characteristics become more or less advantageous or neutral.
Knows how natural selection and its evolutionary consequences provide a scientific
explanation for the diversity and unity of past and present life forms on Earth.
Knows the history of the origin and evolution of life on Earth.
Grade Level:
6-8
Subject Area:
life science
Standard:
Knows about the diversity and unity that characterize life.
Benchmarks:
Knows evidence that supports the idea that there is unity among organisms despite the
fact that some species look very different (e.g., evidence of common ancestry).
Grade Level:
6-8, 9-12
Subject Area:
Earth science
Standard:
Understands basic Earth processes.
Benchmarks:
(6-8)Knows that fossils provide important evidence of how life and environmental
conditions have changed on Earth over time.
(9-12)Understands the concept of plate tectonics.
(9-12)Knows the effects of movements of crustal plates (e.g., earthquakes occur along the
boundaries between colliding plates; sea floor spreading occurs where plates are moving
apart; mountain building occurs where plates are moving together; volcanic eruptions
release pressure created by molten rock beneath the Earth's surface).

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