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Year 6

The survival of the fittest

I can explain the meaning of ‘survival of the fittest’ and give examples in animals or plants.

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Year 6

The survival of the fittest

I can explain the meaning of ‘survival of the fittest’ and give examples in animals or plants.

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Share activities with pupils
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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Charles Darwin suggested that all the kinds of living things that exist today developed from earlier types.
  2. Some animals and plants are more likely to survive than others.
  3. Living things that survive can reproduce to pass on characteristics to their offspring.
  4. The most useful and strongest adaptations are passed on to enable the next generation of plants or animals to survive.
  5. Survival of the fittest means organisms that are better adapted to their habitat are most likely to survive & reproduce.

Keywords

  • Charles Darwin - Charles Darwin was an English scientist who studied nature.

  • Adaptation - An adaptation is a feature of a plant or animal that helps them to survive in their habitat.

  • Offspring - Living things create offspring when they reproduce.

  • Survive - To survive means to continue to stay alive.

  • Reproduce - When living things reproduce they create their offspring.

Common misconception

Pupils may think that the ‘fittest’, as in ‘survival of the fittest’, means the most physically fit or healthy, rather than the most suited to the environment and conditions.

Using the examples in the slide deck, clearly explain that when we refer to the ‘fittest’ living things surviving, we mean those that are best suited to the conditions they are living in.


To help you plan your year 6 science lesson on: The survival of the fittest, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Challenge pupils to think about all the different ways a living thing could be the 'fittest' to survive in its habitat to help them understand that it doesn’t always mean most physically healthy or strongest. For example, whales with more fat on their bodies are more likely to survive in cold seas.
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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match the species to the habitat it is best adapted to survive in.
Correct Answer:polar bear ,very cold, snowy environment
tick

very cold, snowy environment

Correct Answer:cactus,very dry, hot environment
tick

very dry, hot environment

Correct Answer:earthworm ,cool, damp soil
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cool, damp soil

Correct Answer:orca ,cold, underwater environment
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cold, underwater environment

Q2.
What is the name of this scientist who observed differences in species of birds living on the Galápagos Islands in the 1800s?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: Charles Darwin, Darwin
Q3.
A generation of a species is …
the date the species first came into existence.
the amount of time it takes a plant or animal to complete a full life cycle.
Correct answer: all of the species born and living around the same time.
Q4.
How do living things get their adaptations?
An image in a quiz
They show each other how to adapt.
Correct answer: They are passed from one generation of a species to another.
They learn to adapt as they become older.
Q5.
Which of these statements about offspring is not correct?
An image in a quiz
Offspring are created by reproduction.
Correct answer: Offspring are always alike to their parents in every way.
Both plants and animals can have offspring.
Offspring usually vary and are not exactly the same as their parents.
Q6.
Offspring usually look similar, but not identical to, their parents. What are these differences known as?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: variation
adaptation
reproduction
Q6 nicepix/Shutterstock

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which scientist suggested a theory about how living things change over time?
Isaac Newton
Mary Anning
Correct answer: Charles Darwin
Jane Goodall
David Attenborough
Q2.
Which of these statements is correct?
All living things in a species are equally as likely to survive as each other.
All living things must help others in their species in order to survive.
Correct answer: Some living things are more likely to survive than others in their species.
Q3.
Living things that survive longer are more likely to and pass their favourable characteristics on to their offspring.
Correct Answer: reproduce
Q4.
What does ‘survival of the fittest’ mean?
Correct answer: Organisms that are better adapted are most likely to survive and reproduce.
Organisms that have had the most exercise are the most likely to reproduce.
More healthy animals and plants will survive longer.
Q5.
Which adaptations are generally passed on through several generations of offspring?
Correct answer: The strongest and most useful adaptations.
The weakest and least useful adaptations.
The most unusual adaptations.
Q6.
Why is the dark coloured moth the most fit to survive in a habitat with lots of dark coloured tree trunks?
An image in a quiz
It can fly faster.
Correct answer: It can hide better from predators.
It is easy to see in daylight.
It is the most healthy.

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