WHAT SEPARATES HUMANS FROM OTHER ANIMALS?

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1 ACTIVITY 1 WHAT SEPARATES HUMANS FROM OTHER ANIMALS? EXPERIMENT OBJECTIVES AND CONTENT In this activity, students find a number of characteristics that distinguish humans from other animals. SUGGESTED MATERIALS Household materials: Images of different animals (fish, birds, marine and land animals, insects, crustaceans, etc.) at different ages (baby seal [whitecoat] compared to a grey-colored adult, baby moose, etc.) Stuffed animals Animal and human figurines Images of different human beings (men and women from babies to the elderly) Books on animal life Several live or stuffed animals (mice, hamsters, fish, earthworms, insects, etc.) School supplies: Drawing paper Pencils Erasers THIS MAY BE A DELICATE SUBJECT FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT BELIEVE THAT HUMANS ARE ALSO ANIMALS. THIS POSSIBILITY SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR. ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE External anatomy of human beings CONTEXT: SITUATIONAL PROBLEM OR RESEARCH QUESTION Human beings have two arms, two legs, a torso and a head, so they cannot be confused with fish. But many other animals also have two arms, two legs, a torso, and a head, yet they are not like human beings. So how do we distinguish human beings from other animals? ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES GUIDE 1

2 SUGGESTED PREPARATORY ACTIVITIES (INTRODUCTION) Students might think back to a visit to the zoo or the Biodôme, or simply think about their household pet, and name anatomical or behavioral traits that characterize the animals they are thinking about. For each animal named, they try to find at least one difference from humans. INITIAL IDEAS AND HYPOTHESES Here are a few examples of hypotheses the students might formulate based on their initial ideas: Example 1 I predict that I will be able to distinguish humans from monkeys by observing their anatomy. I believe this because even if monkeys have faces that resemble those of humans, they are much hairier. Example 2 I predict that if I study the behavior of dogs that live with humans, I will be able to distinguish them from humans. I believe this because dogs do not speak the same language as humans. Example 3 I predict that if I imitate the calls or behaviors of different animals, my friends will be able to tell whether they are human or from another animal. I believe this because while humans can imitate the voice of someone else or, for example, a lion s roar, a lion cannot speak like a human. WORK PLAN AND EXPERIMENTATION Here are a few examples of experiments the students can carry out to verify their hypotheses: Example A The students spread out images of various animals and humans, on their desk to examine the different anatomies. They then amuse themselves by making comparisons between the animals to see which ones least and most resemble humans in their external anatomy. RECORD ALL YOUR IDEAS AND OBSERVATIONS IN YOUR EXPERIMENT WORKBOOK. 2 ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES GUIDE

3 Example B Using books, figurines or any live animals in the classroom, the students describe how each animal moves, feeds, communicates, reproduces, defends itself, etc. They draw up a list of common points (identical traits) and particularities (distinctive traits) that distinguish humans from other animals. Example C Students imitate animals (calls, movements, distinctive behavior, etc.) and have other members of the team guess their identity. They record the characteristic(s) that allowed them to identify the imitated animal. Some students might try to imitate humans such as babies (e.g., crying, always moving) or the elderly (e.g., curved back, walking with a cane). EXPERIMENTAL FACTORS To ensure scientific rigor, the students should evaluate the experimental factors that might influence the experimental results. Sample of images too limited Characteristics observed DISCUSSION: SUGGESTED INTEGRATION ACTIVITIES (CONSOLIDATION) By pooling their results, students will be able to better answer the initial question; did all the students find a characteristic that distinguishes humans from the other animals? There is more than one possible answer. The concepts of classification of the animal kingdom are important. Each team could show the other teams what they have done to distinguish humans from the other animals. The youngest students (grade 1) could present their results in a very simple table (same/not same) made up of large squares with images, figurines or drawings showing the characteristics that distinguish humans from the other animals. Older students (grade 2) could write the names of animals in the cells of a table, along with the characteristics used to determine what distinguishes each from humans. ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES GUIDE 3

4 SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES FOR APPLYING KNOWLEDGE (APPLICATION) To apply their knowledge, students could invent a story in which humans and other animals meet each other and tell each other apart by specific anatomical characteristics or behaviors. The teacher could suggest that students read Rudyard Kipling s The Jungle Book, a collection of moral tales relating the adventures of Mowgli, a boy who lives with animals in the jungle. SCIENTIFIC CONCEPTUAL CONTENT THE DIFFERENT ANIMALS Without going into animal classification in detail, animals can be grouped into several large classes, including mammals (land and marine), birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, and crustaceans. Within each of these classes there are orders, families, genera and species. Human beings, or Homo sapiens, like other mammals (cats, dogs, horses, monkeys and whales) are among the most complex creatures of the animal kingdom. HUMANS COMPARED TO OTHER ANIMALS Anatomy Humans are part of the order Primates, along with monkeys. Primates are distinguished from other animals essentially by their highly developed brains, the position of their eyes on the face, and their ability to grasp onto things. These three anatomical particularities give primates superior abilities in analyzing and integrating information received by the brain (intelligence), 3D vision, and fine motor skills (more sophisticated tool-making, better ability to handle objects because of their opposable thumbs). However, monkeys tend to be much hairier than humans. Locomotion While monkeys are able to walk on two legs, and while human babies crawl on all fours, humans are the only animals that are bimanous (having two hands with opposable thumbs) and fully bipedal as adults. Kangaroos, ostriches and penguins are also bipedal, but they do not have two hands like humans do. Language Human language is much more developed than that of monkeys. 4 ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES GUIDE

5 Society Humans live in societies of varying size and complexity, just like ants, bees and other animals. However, depending on the region of the world, human societies can be very different from one another, and their habitations are also extremely diverse. Food Humans eat a greater variety of food than the other primates. In more developed areas, humans can easily find their food in supermarkets. Communication Humans can travel quickly in nearly all environments (on roads, on water, underground, in the air, and even in space!). They also have methods of communicating virtually (e.g., Internet, telephone) so that they can interact with, learn from, and exchange information with each other without necessarily being in the same place. Unusual fact While numerous vertebrates yawn, contagious yawning would appear to be particular to Homo sapiens, as this phenomenon has never been observed in other species, not even the great apes. CULTURAL REFERENCES History There are several different hypotheses on the origins of modern humans, but it would appear that the first true humans (Homo sapiens) first appeared about 200,000 years ago. Sapiens is a Latin word meaning intelligent. Historical figures The Swedish botanist Carl von Linné ( ) developed the current system of classifying living things, in which humans (genus Homo, species sapiens) are placed in the order Primates, along with monkeys. The French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire ( ) highlighted the anatomical similarities between humans and many other animal species, which led other scientists to discover the common origins of all primates. In 1871, Charles Darwin used his theory of natural selection to explain how humans were descended from monkeys. Biology Biologists consider humans to be super-predators, modifying their terrestrial environment at a greater rate than any other animal. FOR MORE CULTURAL REFERENCES, VISIT THE ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES WEBSITE: ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES GUIDE 5

6 REFERENCES Grimaud Hervé, Dominique. Les origines de l homme: tout ce qu on sait et comment on le sait. Paris: De La Martinière Jeunesse Kipling, Rudyard. Le livre de la jungle. Tournai: La renaissance du livre Mohun, Janet. Être humain: origines, anatomie, psychologie et culture. Saint-Laurent: ERPI Deputte, Bernard L. Le bâillement chez les vertébrés. In Bulletin intérieur société française pour l étude du comportement animal. [Website, 2002]. Consulted August 15, Futura-Sciences. Retour sur la place de l homme dans le règne animal. In Futura-Sciences: au coeur de la science. [Website, 2005]. retour-sur-la-place-de-lhomme-dans-le-regne-animal_7740/. Consulted August 15, Hominides. La préhistoire Vision d ensemble. In Hominides. [Website, 2007]. Consulted August 13, Terra Nova. Des premiers hommes à l homme moderne. La préhistoire pour les enfants. In Terra Nova. [Website, 2003]. Consulted August 13, Conception L île du savoir (CRÉ de Montréal). A project of Produced by Major financial partners 6 ÉCLAIRS DE SCIENCES GUIDE

7 process of active discovery general learning process in science and technology (in elementary school) Planning and carrying out Context related to everyday life Outcome Initial ideas and hypothesis Situation problem or Discovery question or Need to be fulfilled Question related to the operation of an object (how does it work?) My initial ideas: I share my own ideas. My hypothesis: I predict that... I think that because I imagine my prototype. I think it works like this My equipment: I observe and handle the equipment. How could this equipment be useful to me? I choose my equipment and my materials. Carrying out my process: What will the steps be? What precautions should I take? My actions: I carry out the steps of my protocol. I note or draw what I observe, what I do and what I discover. My results: What is my answer to the problem, question or need? My outcome: Do my results confirm my hypothesis or not? Are my results similar to those of the other teams? Can the other teams' results help me to find answers to my problem, my question or my initial need? What could I communicate concerning my discoveries? New question? What I learned: What do I retain from this activity? What could I communicate concerning my results or my discoveries? 2011 /REV0202EN