EVOLUTION & NATURAL SELECTION — SELF-CHECKING ANSWER MAZE
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WHAT'S IN THIS FOLDER
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Evolution_Maze_Printable.pdf      - 2 pages: student maze (p1) + answer key (p2). Print as-is.
Evolution_Maze_Interactive.html   - Standalone digital version. Double-click to open in any
                                    browser. No internet, account, app, or install needed.
Go_Digital_QR_Page.pdf            - A branded page with a QR code + link to the hosted online
                                    version. Hand out, project, or post in your LMS.
editable_svg/                     - Vector source for all three pages (Inkscape/Illustrator/any SVG editor).
previews/                         - PNG previews of each page.
source/                           - The Python generators (see "Regenerating" below).


HOW THE MAZE WORKS
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Each box gives a description/function clue. The student NAMES the term, then follows the line
labeled with that answer to the next box. Only the all-correct route reaches FINISHED.

Correct path:
  A Mutation -> D Variation -> E Natural selection -> H Adaptation -> I Speciation -> L Evolution -> FINISH

Self-check property: every DECOY box (B, C, F, G, J, K) is built so that naming it correctly
matches NONE of its exits -- it dead-ends. That tells the student an earlier turn was wrong.
The decoys are deliberate confusions of the path terms:
  Gene flow (vs Mutation/Variation -- another source of allele change),
  Genetic drift (vs Natural selection -- random vs non-random change),
  Artificial selection (vs Natural selection -- human-directed vs nature-directed),
  Fitness (vs Natural selection/Adaptation -- reproductive success, NOT physical strength),
  Acclimation (vs Adaptation -- a non-heritable lifetime adjustment vs a heritable population change),
  Extinction (vs Speciation -- species dying out vs species forming).

Teaching bonus built into the layout: box I (Speciation) has an exit labeled "Extinction" that
leads to a dead end, so the common speciation/extinction mix-up sends students off-route.

Caveat (worth telling students): with many cross-paths, a guesser making the "right wrong answers"
can occasionally fluke their way to FINISHED. The answer key is the source of truth; the interactive
version also flags any route that reaches the end without following the correct path.


THE INTERACTIVE VERSION
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Type the term for the current box and press Enter to travel the exit labeled with your answer.
- The current box's exit labels glow teal.
- Wrong answers are silent -- you slide off-route and only find out when you hit a dead end.
- A first-letter hint button and back-up / hint counters are included.
- Reaching FINISH by a non-correct route is flagged at the end.
Reasonable synonyms are accepted (e.g. survival of the fittest -> natural selection,
selective breeding -> artificial selection, migration -> gene flow, reproductive success -> fitness,
descent with modification -> evolution, new species -> speciation).


BEFORE YOU PUBLISH
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1. Replace "(c) Your Store Name" with your actual store name. It appears on:
     - both maze pages (footer)            -> source/build_evolution_maze.py  (search: Your Store Name)
     - the QR page (header area + footer)  -> source/build_evolution_qr_page.py (STORE = ...)
   Or edit the text directly in the editable_svg/ files if you prefer not to run the scripts.
2. Host the interactive HTML (e.g. Netlify) and SCAN-TEST the QR code once your site is live.
   This package's QR points to: https://evolutionmaze.netlify.app/
   If your URL differs, update URL and SHORT in source/build_evolution_qr_page.py and rebuild.


REGENERATING (optional)
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Requires Python 3 with: cairosvg, qrcode, opencv-python-headless  (and poppler's pdfunite to merge).
  pip install cairosvg qrcode opencv-python-headless --break-system-packages

From the source/ folder:
  python3 evolution_icons.py                  # renders the 12-tile icon check sheet
  python3 build_evolution_maze.py             # student + key (svg/png/pdf)
  pdfunite maze_evo_student.pdf maze_evo_key.pdf Evolution_Maze_Printable.pdf
  python3 build_evolution_maze_interactive.py # the HTML
  python3 build_evolution_qr_page.py          # the QR page (edit URL/SHORT first if needed)

All 100% original art -- no third-party clip art.
