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primary homework help charles darwin

Charles Darwin Primary Resource

Discover the events that led to darwin’s theory of evolution.

This Science primary resource introduces children to the life of Charles Darwin in this easy-to-read comic. Discover the events that led to his theory of evolution. What was Darwin’s favourite hobby? Where did he first encounter a rainforest? How many years did he spend writing about barnacles?

Pupils will learn about the different ways that Charles Darwin studied animals in our National Geographic Kids’ Science primary resource sheet.

The teaching resource can be used in study group tasks for a simple explanation of Darwin’s life and work. It could be used as a printed handout for each pupil to read themselves, or for display on the interactive whiteboard, as part of a whole class reading exercise.

Activity: Ask children to imagine they are Charles Darwin making notes on his discoveries in South America, and write a diary entry of what he may have seen or studied. They could include illustrations of different species. Pupils could research the meaning of ‘natural selection’ and write down their findings. Our Charles Darwin: Theory of Evolution resource could be used to help them.

N.B.  The following information for mapping the resource documents to the school curriculum is specifically tailored to the  English National Curriculum  and  Scottish Curriculum for Excellence . We are currently working to bring specifically tailored curriculum resource links for our other territories; including  South Africa ,  Australia  and  New Zealand . If you have any queries about our upcoming curriculum resource links, please email:  [email protected]

This Science primary resource assists with teaching the following Key Stage 2 Science (Year 6) objectives from the National Curriculum :

Pupils should be taught to:  

  • recognise that living things have changed over time and that fossils provide information about living things that inhabited the Earth millions of years ago  
  • recognise that living things produce offspring of the same kind, but normally offspring vary and are not identical to their parents  
  • identify how animals and plants are adapted to suit their environment in different ways and that adaptation may lead to evolution

Pupils might find out about the work of palaeontologists such as Mary Anning and about how Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace developed their ideas on evolution.

This Science primary resource assists with teaching the following Sciences First level objectives from the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence :

  • By comparing generations of families of humans, plants and animals, I can begin to understand how characteristics are inherited

Scottish Curriculum for Excellence Sciences Second level objectives :

  • By exploring the characteristics offspring inherit when living things reproduce, I can distinguish between inherited and non- inherited characteristics.

Download primary resource

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8th April 2020

Charles Darwin

Portrait of Charles Darwin

Charles Darwin was a scientist who is most famous for his evolution theory , which tries to explain how animals change over time.

Charles was born into a wealthy family, his father being a wealthy doctor. From the age of 8, he was interested in natural history and collecting animals. When he was older, he joined a student natural history group at university.

In 1831, Charles went on a worldwide voyage on the ship HMS Beagle. Most famously, he discovered the wildlife that lived on the island of Galapagos. He found out that turtles had shells that showed which island they came from. Charles also found mockingbirds similar to those in Chile but with slight variations.

primary homework help charles darwin

On the Origin of Species

Charles Darwin spent decades after his voyage studying and documenting animals. He worked so hard, publishing various journals, that he once got very ill, and was told to take a few weeks off living in the countryside by doctors.

In 1859, he published his most famous book: On the Origin of Species . It explained his theory about how animals evolved through natural selection . Evolution was Charles’ most famous discovery.

He continued researching and writing journals and books. Charles wrote another book called Descent of Man , which was published in 1871. The book described how we are animals and the fact that we descended from apes. He also wrote other books explaining many different theories.

Charles Darwin died in 1882, and he was buried at Westminster Abbey.

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  • Home learning: 7-11 years

Darwin Correspondence Project

  • About Darwin overview
  • Family life overview
  • Darwin on childhood
  • Darwin on marriage
  • Darwin’s observations on his children
  • Darwin and fatherhood
  • The death of Annie Darwin
  • Visiting the Darwins
  • Voyage of HMS Beagle
  • What Darwin read overview
  • Darwin’s student booklist
  • Books on the Beagle
  • Darwin’s reading notebooks
  • On the Origin of Species overview
  • The writing of "Origin"
  • Abstract of Darwin’s theory
  • Alfred Russel Wallace’s essay on varieties
  • Charles Darwin and his publisher
  • Review: The Origin of Species
  • Darwin's notes for his physician, 1865
  • Darwin’s photographic portraits
  • Have you read the one about....
  • Six things Darwin never said – and one he did overview
  • The evolution of a misquotation
  • Portraits of Charles Darwin: a catalogue overview
  • 1.1 Ellen Sharples pastel
  • 1.2 George Richmond, marriage portrait
  • 1.3 Thomas Herbert Maguire, lithograph
  • 1.4 Samuel Laurence drawing 1
  • 1.5 Samuel Laurence drawing 2
  • 1.6 Ouless oil portrait
  • 1.7 Ouless replica
  • 1.8 anonymous drawing, after Ouless
  • 1.9 Rajon, etching after Ouless
  • 1.10 Rajon etching, variant state
  • 1.11 Laura Russell, oil
  • 1.12 Marian Huxley, drawing
  • 1.13 Louisa Nash, drawing
  • 1.14 William Richmond, oil
  • 1.15 Albert Goodwin, watercolour
  • 1.16 Alphonse Legros, drypoint
  • 1.17 Alphonse Legros drawing
  • 1.18 John Collier, oil in Linnean
  • 1.19 John Collier, oil in NPG
  • 1.20 Leopold Flameng etching, after Collier
  • 1.21 window at Christ's College Cambridge
  • 2.1 Thomas Woolner bust
  • 2.2 Thomas Woolner metal plaque
  • 2.3 Wedgwood medallions
  • 2.4 Wedgwood plaque
  • 2.5 Wedgwood medallions, 2nd type
  • 2.6 Adolf von Hildebrand bust
  • 2.7 Joseph Moore, Midland Union medal
  • 2.8 Alphonse Legros medallion
  • 2.9 Legros medallion, plaster model
  • 2.10 Moritz Klinkicht, print from Legros
  • 2.11 Christian Lehr, plaster bust
  • 2.12 Allan Wyon, Royal Society medal
  • 2.13 Edgar Boehm, statue in the NHM
  • 2.14 Boehm, Westminster Abbey roundel
  • 2.15 Boehm terracotta bust (NPG)
  • 2.16 Horace Montford statue, Shrewsbury
  • 2.17 Montford, statuette
  • 2.18 Montford, Carnegie bust
  • 2.19 Montford, bust at the Royal Society
  • 2.20 Montford, terracotta bust, NPG
  • 2.21 Montford, relief at Christ's College
  • 2.22 L.-J. Chavalliaud statue in Liverpool
  • 2.23 Hope Pinker statue, Oxford Museum
  • 2.24 Herbert Hampton statue, Lancaster
  • 2.25 Henry Pegram statue, Birmingham
  • 2.26 Linnean Society medal
  • 2.27 William Couper bust, New York
  • 2.28 Couper bust in Cambridge
  • 3.1 Antoine Claudet, daguerreotype
  • 3.2 Maull and Polyblank photo 1
  • 3.3 Maull and Polyblank photo 2
  • 3.4 William Darwin, photo 1
  • 3.5 William Darwin, photo 2
  • 3.6 William Darwin, photo 3
  • 3.7 Leonard Darwin, photo on verandah
  • 3.8 Leonard Darwin, interior photo
  • 3.9 Leonard Darwin, photo on horseback
  • 3.10 Ernest Edwards, 'Men of Eminence'
  • 3.11 Edwards, in Illustrated London News
  • 3.12 Edwards, second group of photos
  • 3.13 Edwards 'Representative Men'
  • 3.14 Julia Margaret Cameron, photos
  • 3.15 George Charles Wallich, photo
  • 3.16 Oscar Rejlander, photos
  • 3.17 Lock and Whitfield, 'Men of Mark'
  • 3.18 Elliott and Fry photos, c.1869-1871
  • 3.19 Elliott and Fry photos c.1880-1
  • 3.20 Elliott and Fry, c.1880-1, verandah
  • 3.21 Herbert Rose Barraud, photos
  • 4.1 Albert Way, comic drawings
  • 4.2 Augustus Earle, caricature drawing
  • 4.3 Alfred Crowquill, caricature
  • 4.4 Thomas Huxley, caricature sketch
  • 4.5 William Beard, comic painting
  • 4.6 Thomas Nast, cartoon
  • 4.7 'Vanity Fair', caricature
  • 4.8 'Vanity Fair', preliminary study
  • 4.9 'Graphic', cartoon
  • 4.10 'Hornet' caricature of Darwin
  • 4.11 'Fun' cartoon, 'A little lecture'
  • 4.12 'Fun', Wedding procession
  • 4.13 'Fun' cartoon by Griset, 'Emotional'
  • 4.14 'Fun' cartoon, 'That troubles'
  • 4.15 George Cruikshank, comic drawing
  • 4.16 Joseph Simms, physiognomy
  • 4.17 'Figaro', unidentifiable 1871
  • 4.18 'Figaro' chromolithograph 1
  • 4.19 George Montbard, caricature
  • 4.20 Frederick Waddy, caricature
  • 4.21 Gegeef, 'Our National Church', 1
  • 4.22 Gegeef et al., 'Our National Church', 2
  • 4.23 Gegeef, 'Battle Field of Science'
  • 4.24 'Daily Graphic', Nast satire
  • 4.25 'Punch' 1877 re. Cambridge doctorate
  • 4.26 Christmas card caricature, monkeys
  • 4.27 'Four founders of Darwinismus'
  • 4.28 'English celebrities' montage
  • 4.29 Richard Grant White, 'Fall of man'
  • 4.30 'La Petite Lune', Gill cartoon
  • 4.31 'La Lune Rousse', Gill cartoon
  • 4.32 Anis liqueur label
  • 4.33 'Harper's Weekly', Bellew caricature
  • 4.34 'Punch', Sambourne cartoon 1
  • 4.35 Frederick Sem, caricature
  • 4.36 Sem, Chistmas card
  • 4.37 'Mosquito' satire
  • 4.38 Franz Goedecker, caricature
  • 4.39 'Moonshine' magazine cartoon
  • 4.40 'Phrenological Magazine'
  • 4.41 'Punch', Sambourne cartoon 2
  • 4.42 'Punch' Sambourne cartoon 3
  • 4.43 'Illustrated London News' article
  • 4.44 'Puck' cartoon 1
  • 4.45 'Puck' cartoon 2
  • 4.46 'Puck' cartoon 3
  • 4.47 'Puck' cartoon 4
  • 4.48 'Puck', cartoon 5
  • 4.49 Alfred Bryan, caricature
  • 4.50 Cigar box lid design
  • 4.51 Frederick Holder 'Life and Work'
  • 4.52 'Wasp' caricature
  • 4.53 Claud Warren, 'Outlines of Hands'
  • 4.54 jubilees of Queen Victoria
  • 4.55 Harry Furniss caricature
  • 4.56 'Larks' cartoon
  • 4.57 silhouette cartoon
  • 4.58 'Simian, savage' . . . drawings
  • 4.59 'Simplicissimus' cartoon
  • Darwin and the experimental life overview
  • What is an experiment?
  • From morphology to movement: observation and experiment
  • Fool's experiments
  • Experimenting with emotions
  • Animals, ethics, and the progress of science
  • Fake Darwin: myths and misconceptions
  • Darwin's bad days
  • Darwin’s first love
  • The letters overview
  • Darwin's life in letters overview
  • 1821-1836: Childhood to the Beagle voyage
  • 1837-43: The London years to 'natural selection'
  • 1844-1846: Building a scientific network
  • 1847-1850: Microscopes and barnacles
  • 1851-1855: Death of a daughter
  • 1856-1857: The 'Big Book'
  • 1858-1859: Origin
  • 1860: Answering critics
  • 1861: Gaining allies
  • 1862: A multiplicity of experiments
  • 1863: Quarrels at home, honours abroad
  • 1864: Failing health
  • 1865: Delays and disappointments
  • 1866: Survival of the fittest
  • 1867: A civilised dispute
  • 1868: Studying sex
  • 1869: Forward on all fronts
  • 1870: Human evolution
  • 1871: An emptying nest
  • 1872: Job done?
  • 1873: Animal or vegetable?
  • 1874: A turbulent year
  • 1875: Pulling strings
  • 1876: In the midst of life
  • 1877: Flowers and honours
  • 1878: Movement and sleep
  • 1879: Tracing roots
  • 1880: Sensitivity and worms
  • 1881: Old friends and new admirers
  • 1882: Nothing too great or too small
  • Darwin's works in letters overview
  • Journal of researches
  • Living and fossil cirripedia
  • Before Origin: the ‘big book’ overview
  • Dates of composition of Darwin's manuscript on species
  • Rewriting Origin - the later editions overview
  • How old is the earth?
  • The whale-bear
  • Origin: the lost changes for the second German edition
  • Climbing plants
  • Insectivorous plants
  • Forms of flowers
  • Cross and self fertilisation
  • Life of Erasmus Darwin
  • Movement in Plants
  • About the letters
  • Lifecycle of a letter film overview
  • Editing a Letter
  • Working in the Darwin archive
  • Capturing Darwin’s voice: audio of selected letters
  • Correspondence with women
  • The hunt for new letters
  • Editorial policy and practice overview
  • Full notes on editorial policy
  • Symbols and abbreviations
  • Darwin's letters: a timeline
  • Darwin's letters: World Map
  • Have you read the one about...
  • Charles Darwin: A Life in Letters
  • Darwin in Conversation exhibition
  • Diagrams and drawings in letters
  • Favourite Letters overview
  • Be envious of ripe oranges: To W. D. Fox, May 1832
  • That monstrous stain: To J. M. Herbert, 2 June 1833
  • My most solemn request: To Emma Darwin, 5 July 1844
  • Our poor dear dear child: To Emma Darwin, [23 April 1851]
  • I beg a million pardons: To John Lubbock, [3 September 1862]
  • Prize possessions: To Henry Denny, 17 January [1865]
  • How to manage it: To J. D. Hooker, [17 June 1865]
  • A fly on the flower: From Hermann Müller, 23 October 1867
  • Reading my roommate’s illustrious ancestor: To T. H. Huxley, 10 June 1868
  • A beginning, & that is something: To J. D. Hooker, [22 January 1869]
  • Perfect copper-plate hand: From Adolf Reuter, 30 May 1869
  • Darwin’s favourite photographer: From O. G. Rejlander, 30 April 1871
  • Your letter eternalized before us: From N. D. Doedes, 27 March 1873
  • Lost in translation: From Auguste Forel, 12 November 1874
  • I never trusted Drosera: From E. F. Lubbock, [after 2 July] 1875
  • From Argus pheasant to Mivart: To A. R. Wallace, 17 June 1876
  • Wearing his knowledge lightly: From Fritz Müller, 5 April 1878
  • Terms of engagement: To Julius Wiesner, 25 October 1881
  • Intellectual capacities: From Caroline Kennard, 26 December 1881
  • Darwin plays overview
  • 'Emma' audio play
  • 'Frank' audio play
  • 'Like confessing a murder' audio play
  • 'Re: Design' dramatisation overview
  • Dramatisation script
  • Browse all Darwin letters in date order
  • List of correspondents
  • Commentary overview
  • Evolution overview
  • Natural selection
  • Sexual selection
  • Inheritance
  • Correlation of growth: deaf blue-eyed cats, pigs, and poison
  • Natural Selection: the trouble with terminology Part I
  • Survival of the fittest: the trouble with terminology Part II
  • Darwin’s species notebooks: ‘I think . . .’
  • Geology overview
  • Darwin and geology
  • Darwin’s introduction to geology
  • The geology of the Beagle voyage
  • Darwin and coral reefs
  • Darwin’s earthquakes
  • Darwin and the Geological Society
  • Darwin and Glen Roy
  • Bibliography of Darwin’s geological publications
  • Life sciences overview
  • Darwin and Down overview
  • Darwin’s hothouse and lists of hothouse plants
  • Species and varieties
  • The evolution of honeycomb
  • A tale of two bees
  • Beauty and the seed overview
  • Mauro Galetti: profile of an ecologist
  • Casting about: Darwin on worms
  • Was Darwin an ecologist?
  • Dipsacus and Drosera
  • Darwin and barnacles overview
  • Darwin’s study of the Cirripedia
  • Darwin and vivisection overview
  • Vivisection: draft petition
  • Vivisection: BAAS committee report
  • Vivisection: first sketch of the bill
  • Vivisection: Darwin's testimony
  • 'An Appeal' against animal cruelty
  • Biodiversity and its histories
  • Human nature overview
  • Darwin on human evolution
  • The expression of emotions overview
  • Emotion experiment overview
  • Results of the Darwin Online Emotions Experiment
  • Face of emotion
  • Darwin’s queries on expression
  • The origin of language overview
  • Language: key letters
  • Language: Interview with Gregory Radick
  • Film series podcasts
  • Religion overview
  • Darwin and design
  • What did Darwin believe?
  • Darwin and the Church
  • British Association meeting 1860
  • Darwin and religion in America
  • Essays and reviews by Asa Gray overview
  • Darwiniana – Preface
  • Essay: Design versus necessity
  • Essay: Natural selection & natural theology
  • Essay: Evolution and theology
  • Essay: What is Darwinism?
  • Essay: Evolutionary teleology
  • Science and religion Interviews overview
  • Interview with Emily Ballou
  • Interview with Simon Conway Morris
  • Interview with John Hedley Brooke
  • Interview with Randal Keynes
  • Interview with Tim Lewens
  • Interview with Pietro Corsi
  • For the curious... overview
  • Cordillera Beagle expedition
  • The Darwin family
  • Darwin’s plant experiments
  • Behind the scenes
  • Darwin’s Networks
  • Darwin and the Beagle voyage
  • Darwin and working from home
  • Darwin, cats and cat shows
  • Darwin and dogs
  • Darwin's illness
  • Plant or animal? (Or: Don’t try this at home!)
  • Strange things sent to Darwin in the post
  • People overview
  • Key correspondents
  • Beagle voyage networks
  • Family and friends
  • Darwin's scientific network
  • Readers and critics
  • Publishers, artists and illustrators
  • People pages in alphabetical order
  • German and Dutch photograph albums overview
  • Photograph album of German and Austrian scientists
  • Photograph album of Dutch admirers
  • German poems presented to Darwin
  • List of all people mentioned in letters
  • Learning overview
  • Ages 7-11 overview
  • Darwin The Collector
  • Detecting Darwin
  • Darwin And Evolution
  • Darwin's Fantastical Voyage
  • Ages 11-14 overview
  • Darwin and Religion
  • Doing Darwin’s Experiments
  • How dangerous was Darwin?
  • Offer of a lifetime
  • Darwin and slavery
  • Beagle Voyage
  • Darwin’s scientific women
  • Schools Gallery: Using Darwin’s letters in the classroom
  • Universities overview
  • Letters as a primary source overview
  • Scientific networks
  • Scientific practice
  • Controversy
  • Discussion questions and essay questions
  • Suggested reading
  • Getting to know Darwin's science overview
  • Biogeography
  • Variation under domestication
  • Instinct and the evolution of mind
  • Floral dimorphism
  • Power of movement in plants
  • Dining at Down House
  • Darwin and human nature overview
  • Moral nature
  • Race, civilization, and progress
  • Women and science overview
  • Women’s scientific participation
  • Women as a scientific audience
  • Referencing women’s work
  • Darwin in public and private
  • Darwin as mentor
  • Discussion questions
  • Darwin timeline
  • Teacher training
  • Resources overview
  • Historical documents
  • Interactive
  • About us overview
  • Publications overview
  • The correspondence of Charles Darwin
  • Charles Darwin: the Beagle letters
  • Charles Darwin’s letters: a selection 1825-1859
  • Evolution: Selected Letters of Charles Darwin 1860-1870
  • The correspondence 1821-60: anniversary paperback set
  • A voyage round the world
  • Calendars to the correspondence of Charles Darwin
  • Darwin and women: a selection of letters
  • Research initiatives overview
  • Darwin and ecological science
  • Darwin and religion: a definitive web resource
  • Evolutionary views of human nature
  • The Darwin and gender project overview
  • Darwin and gender projects by Harvard students
  • Darwin’s Women: Short Film
  • Epsilon: a collaborative digital framework
  • Funding overview
  • History overview
  • Frederick Burkhardt (1912-2007)
  • Anne Schlabach Burkhardt (1916–2012)

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Do try this at home.

Support your children’s learning by downloading our free and fun activities for those aged between 7-11 and 11-14 years, using Darwin’s letters.

Here are a few highlights for 7-11 year olds:

1 Become a Darwin detective

What do you know about Charles Darwin? Who was he and why is he important? 

Track down clues to find out more about Darwin’s life and work. Explore Darwin’s study to find out more about him. Download ‘Who lives here?’ activity

Marry

Darwin deciding whether or not to marry – what did he decide?   Download 'Piecing Things Together' activity

Follow-up family discussion:

If you were going to interview Darwin about his life and work, what would you like to ask him?

More Detecting Darwin activities

2 Learn about Darwin and the Beagle Voyage

This is the journey that changed Darwin’s life but how did he get to go and what did he discover?

On the voyage was Darwin excited? Bored? Homesick? Read his letters to find out.  Download ‘Darwin’s letters home' activity

Packing list

Darwin’s packing list - what would you take?   Download ‘Packing for a voyage’ activity

Darwin sent back rocks, soils, plants and animal specimens from all the places that he visited on the voyage. They helped him find out more about the natural world and its variety. How can we learn more about natural world without going on a voyage?

More Darwin and the Beagle  Voyage activities

3 Learn about Darwin the collector:

Before joining the  Beagle voyage   Darwin was described as being:  ‘amply qualified for collecting, observing and noting any thing worthy to be noted in Natural History’ ( Letter from J. S. Henslow, 24 August 1831 ) 

Encourage your young naturalists with this back garden activity: make a 3-D herbarium specimen.  Download ‘Make a 3-D herbarium specimen’ activity

Share your completed herbarium boxes with us here: @MyDearDarwin

Equipment

Instructions are included!   Download 'Make a 3-D Herbarium’ activity

If you were Darwin how would you send back a rare plant across the sea and which part of the plant would you choose? What things would you have to consider on a plant hunting trip today?

More  Darwin the Collector activities

4 How did Darwin develop his ideas on evolution?

When Darwin returned from his voyage he spent many years thinking about and testing his ideas. How important is adaptation and inheritance to understanding evolution? 

How are things adapted to the environment in which they grow? Design a plant that could survive in the desert or in the jungle.  Download ‘Design a plant’ activity 

Share your plant designs with us here: @MyDearDarwin

Bear

Fill in the missing words   Download ‘Camels and Polar bears’ activity

Why have some animals become extinct and why does it still happen today?

More  Darwin and Evolution activities

In this section:

Learning resources.

See all of our learning resources:

For 7-11 years

And 11-14 years

Working from home

View of Darwin's study showing his armchair and table

The best minds can work from home 

See how Darwin worked at Down

     

    schools gallery.

primary homework help charles darwin

Pupils from Meldreth Primary School, Cambs, learn about Darwin’s fantastical voyage

primary homework help charles darwin

Pupils from Meldreth Primary School write a letter home from the voyage

primary homework help charles darwin

Discovering a Toxodon

primary homework help charles darwin

Packing for a voyage

primary homework help charles darwin

Writing letters home

primary homework help charles darwin

3D herbarium, St Luke's Primary School, Cambridge

primary homework help charles darwin

Pupils from St Luke's Primary School, Cambridge, create 3D herbaria

primary homework help charles darwin

Pupil cartoon of the peppered moth story

primary homework help charles darwin

Pupils from St Matthew's Primary School, Cambridge, read a letter from Charles Darwin

Learning Timeline

Explore darwin's life and times through this timeline..

Darwin Correspondence Project [email protected]

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ENCYCLOPEDIC ENTRY

Charles darwin.

Charles Darwin and his observations while aboard the HMS Beagle , changed the understanding of evolution on Earth.

Biology, Earth Science, Geography, Physical Geography

Historic photograph of Charles Darwin in profile.

Photograph by Chronical/Alamy Stock Photo

Historic photograph of Charles Darwin in profile.

Charles Darwin was born in 1809 in Shrewsbury, England. His father, a doctor, had high hopes that his son would earn a medical degree at Edinburgh University in Scotland, where he enrolled at the age of sixteen. It turned out that Darwin was more interested in natural history than medicine—it was said that the sight of blood made him sick to his stomach. While he continued his studies in theology at Cambridge, it was his focus on natural history that became his passion.

In 1831, Darwin embarked on a voyage aboard a ship of the British Royal Navy, the HMS Beagle, employed as a naturalist . The main purpose of the trip was to survey the coastline of South America and chart its harbors to make better maps of the region. The work that Darwin did was just an added bonus.

Darwin spent much of the trip on land collecting samples of plants, animals, rocks, and fossils . He explored regions in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and remote islands such as the Galápagos. He packed all of his specimens into crates and sent them back to England aboard other vessels.

Upon his return to England in 1836, Darwin’s work continued. Studies of his samples and notes from the trip led to groundbreaking scientific discoveries. Fossils he collected were shared with paleontologists and geologists, leading to advances in the understanding of the processes that shape the Earth’s surface. Darwin’s analysis of the plants and animals he gathered led him to question how species form and change over time. This work convinced him of the insight that he is most famous for— natural selection . The theory of natural selection says that individuals of a species are more likely to survive in their environment and pass on their genes to the next generation when they inherit traits from their parents that are best suited for that specific environment. In this way, such traits become more widespread in the species and can lead eventually to the development of a new species .

In 1859, Darwin published his thoughts about evolution and natural selection in On the Origin of Species . It was as popular as it was controversial. The book convinced many people that species change over time—a lot of time—suggesting that the planet was much older than what was commonly believed at the time: six thousand years.

Charles Darwin died in 1882 at the age of seventy-three. He is buried in Westminster Abbey in London, England.

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Charles Darwin — Comprehension Text (Years 5-6)

Charles Darwin — Comprehension Text (Years 5-6)

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Help children to understand the life and work of Charles Darwin using this comprehension text. After reading through the facts, they can go on to answer the questions provided in the Lesson Pack. The text includes lots of information from a variety of non-fiction sources such as diary entries and newspaper articles, as well as explanations of his important discoveries. Children can read about Charles’ early life, see pictures of important people and places in his life, learn fun facts about his adventures, and much more!

This comprehension text is part of the Charles Darwin Comprehension Lesson Pack which includes six sets of questions that work alongside the text.

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  • Key Stage: Key Stage 2
  • Subject: History
  • Topic: Historical Skills
  • Topic Group: Historical Skills
  • Year(s): Years 5-6
  • Media Type: PDF
  • Resource Type: Worksheet
  • Last Updated: 18/05/2023
  • Resource Code: YA2WAE569

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How Charles Darwin developed the theory of evolution

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  • On the Origin of Species " data-media-type="IMAGE" data-show-counter="true" data-index="11 of 24" data-title="Charles Darwin: On the Origin of Species " data-caption="Title page of the 1859 edition of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species ." data-relative-path="/85/19385-004-EE1AA93C.jpg" data-large-path="https://cdn.britannica.com/85/19385-050-88D075F7.jpg" data-credit="Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (digital file no. 3b16392)" data-license-id="" data-license-title="primary homework help charles darwin" data-assembly-id="15844" data-is-favorite="" data-media-type-name="Photograph" data-thumb="https://cdn.britannica.com/85/19385-003-35ADF7F2.gif" > On the Origin of Species "/> Charles Darwin: On the Origin of Species
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  • The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication (1868) by Charles Darwin." data-relative-path="/64/185364-004-D38C7AB9.jpg" data-large-path="https://cdn.britannica.com/64/185364-050-EEA8192A.jpg" data-credit="The Variation of Animals & Plants Under Domestication, Volume 1 (p.133) by Charles Darwin (John Murray, London, 1905)" data-license-id="" data-license-title="primary homework help charles darwin" data-assembly-id="210352" data-is-favorite="" data-media-type-name="Photograph" data-thumb="https://cdn.britannica.com/64/185364-003-53B43A99.gif" > Charles Darwin: rabbit skulls
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  • The Hornet magazine, March 22, 1871. The original caption read: “A venerable orang-outang. A contribution to unnatural history.”" data-relative-path="/24/182124-004-7249A2F3.jpg" data-large-path="https://cdn.britannica.com/24/182124-050-7249A2F3.jpg" data-credit="Classic Vision/age fotostock" data-license-id="" data-license-title="primary homework help charles darwin" data-assembly-id="210233" data-is-favorite="" data-media-type-name="Photograph" data-thumb="https://cdn.britannica.com/24/182124-003-DC2434AD.gif" > Charles Darwin cartoon
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  1. Famous Victorians for kids

    Charles Darwin (1809 -1882) Darwin was born on February 12, 1809 in Shrewsbury, England. In 1831 he joined a scientific expedition bound for South America and the Pacific Ocean on a sailing ship called The Beagle (1831 - 36). He was to be the ship's naturalist, the expert on plants and animals.

  2. Charles Darwin

    Charles Darwin was an English scientist who studied nature. He is known for his theory of evolution by natural selection. According to this theory, all living things are struggling to survive. The living things that have the most helpful traits for their environment tend to survive. These living things then pass along their helpful traits to ...

  3. History Homework Help: Charles Darwin

    1. We'll start with one of the most important Charles Darwin facts kids should learn: He was an English scientist (1809-1882). 2. He was a famous naturalist (an expert in studying nature). 3. He was a famous biologist (an expert in living things). 4. He was a famous geologist (an expert in rocks and fossils). 5.

  4. Charles Darwin

    The theory of evolution by natural selection that was developed by Charles Darwin revolutionized the study of living things. In his Origin of Species (1859) he provided a scientific explanation of how the diverse species of plants and animals have descended over time from common ancestors. His theory remains central to the foundations of modern ...

  5. Charles Darwin Activities

    Charles Darwin Activities. You can create your own animal adaptation artwork. Create a stencil of an animal. An adult will need to cut the animal out, leaving the animal shape intact. Use a sponge and different coloured paints to create as many different adaptations of the animal as you can using the animal stencil.

  6. History Homework Help: Charles Darwin

    Top 10 Facts about Charles Darwin. Here are some fun and interesting Charles Darwin facts kids will enjoy learning: 1. We'll start with one of the most important Charles Darwin facts kids should learn: He was an English scientist (1809-1882). 2. He was a famous naturalist (an expert in studying nature). 3.

  7. Charles Darwin Quiz for Kids

    Charles Darwin Quiz for Kids. 4 min. Updated: 31st January 2023. Test your knowledge of Charles Darwin with these fun questions! An excellent evolution quiz to improve your understanding of this famous Victorian scientist. Scientist and naturalist Charles Darwin wrote a book about his theory of how life forms change over time to adapt to their ...

  8. Top 20 Charles Darwin Facts for Kids

    Top 20 Charles Darwin Facts for Kids. 3 min. Updated: 31st January 2023. 1. Charles Darwin (1809-1882) was an English scientist. 2. He was born in a place called Shrewsbury in the country of Shropshire. 3. He was a famous biologist (a scientist who studies living things ).

  9. Charles Darwin's Early Life

    Charles Darwin was born on 12th February 1809 in Shrewsbury, England. When he was nine years old, Charles Darwin went to Shrewsbury School for boys. Darwin did not particularly enjoy school and found some of the work, like Latin and Greek, hard. He did, however, love science and was always asking questions.

  10. Charles Darwin Activities

    This guide to Charles Darwin is the best way to allow your science and history homework to evolve. There are fun facts, activities and more to keep independent learning fun! ... Interactive Games Originals eBooks Integrated Units Crash Course Podcast Create Twinkl + IB Primary Years Programme ... Homepage Homework Help Famous Figures Charles ...

  11. Charles Darwin Primary Resource

    Pupils will learn about the different ways that Charles Darwin studied animals in our National Geographic Kids' Science primary resource sheet. The teaching resource can be used in study group tasks for a simple explanation of Darwin's life and work. It could be used as a printed handout for each pupil to read themselves, or for display on ...

  12. Charles Darwin

    Charles Darwin spent decades after his voyage studying and documenting animals. He worked so hard, publishing various journals, that he once got very ill, and was told to take a few weeks off living in the countryside by doctors. In 1859, he published his most famous book: On the Origin of Species. It explained his theory about how animals ...

  13. Home learning: 7-11 years

    More Darwin and Evolution activities. Do try this at home! Support your children's learning by downloading our free and fun activities for those aged between 7-11 and 11-14 years, using Darwin's letters.

  14. Charles Darwin

    Charles Darwin was born in 1809 in Shrewsbury, England. His father, a doctor, had high hopes that his son would earn a medical degree at Edinburgh University in Scotland, where he enrolled at the age of sixteen. It turned out that Darwin was more interested in natural history than medicine—it was said that the sight of blood made him sick to ...

  15. Charles Darwin Activities

    Charles Darwin Activities. You can create your own animal adaptation artwork. Create a stencil of an animal. An adult will need to cut the animal out, leaving the animal shape intact. Use a sponge and different coloured paints to create as many different adaptations of the animal as you can using the animal stencil.

  16. Charles Darwin

    Charles Darwin, carbon-print photograph by Julia Margaret Cameron, 1868. Articles Animals Fine Arts Language Arts Places Plants and Other Living Things Science and Mathematics Social Studies Sports and Hobbies ...

  17. Charles Darwin

    Charles Darwin — Comprehension Text (Years 5-6) Help children to understand the life and work of Charles Darwin using this comprehension text. After reading through the facts, they can go on to answer the questions provided in the Lesson Pack. The text includes lots of information from a variety of non-fiction sources such as diary entries ...

  18. Charles Darwin

    In this four-part lesson, students learn about Charles Darwin—his personal history, his strengths as an observer and independent thinker, and the process by which he developed his groundbreaking theory of evolution. Students view a short video about Darwin's life, keep a journal to learn about the skill of observation, read some of Darwin's letters to learn what kinds of evidence he ...

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  20. Primary homework help charles darwin : Primary homework help saxons

    Primary homework help charles darwin howard county library homework help. Rated 5 stars based on 47 reviews Charles Darwin is a school where students thrive both academically and socially. In other words, did he explain how the variations within the population arise? Find The Perfect Luxury Quotations For All Occasions - Spicing Up Letters ...

  21. Charles Darwin

    Know how the Galapagos finches from Charles Darwin's specimen collection helped him in the formulation of his theory of evolution, particularly the woodpecker finch. This video also in: Scholars Galapagos finch; Scholars woodpecker finch; adaptive radiation in Galapagos finches. This image also in: