Resources for schools

SI_schools_small Darwin did most of his work at home surrounded by his family. His children and his friends’ children helped him by observing plants and animals – they observed the position of spiderwebs, followed the flight path of bees, collected butterflies, and looked at expressions on their pets’ faces. Darwin’s letters are a good way of introducing everyone, including children, to Darwin’s science.

On this page you will find direct links to some of the information on our site particularly relevant to school students.

We are developing resources based on Darwin’s letters for use in schools, and welcome comments and feedback. If you or your school can help develop resources we would like to hear from you.

: Explore the letters

: About Darwin's correspondents

: Darwin and ecology

: Beauty and the seed

: The evolution of honeycomb

: The beetle Darwin couldn't bear to lose

: Podcasts

: Letter sets

: Dear Mr Darwin

: Schools' essay prize

: Dramatisation of the correspondence

Useful links:

ARKIVE: Charles Darwin educational resources provided in association with the British Council

Resources on Darwin and the teaching of evolution from the Wellcome Trust

Information for schools from “Darwin 200″ and the Natural History Museum, especially the Great Plant Hunt: following in Darwin’s footsteps, and the Evolution pages

Understanding evolution for teachers: provided by the University of California Museum of Paleontology

The Open University’s Evolution Megalab

The teachers’ guide to Peter Sis’s The Book of Life, an excellent book on evolution for children, and an animated excerpt

Charles Darwin and Evolution: pages from Christ’s College, Cambridge, including good introductions for kids and teachers

You may also like:

Information for schools on pond ecology from the British Ecological Society, including construction information