Introduction
Welcome young research scientists to the International Symposium of Scientific Discovery! We have invited you to this event because the science world has been shaken with new discoveries in the field of genetics. We've come up with some exciting research around gene flow, but we still have some questions unanswered. This is where you come in. We would like you to study these recent discoveries and compile the data to answer the question of what makes us individuals? It is your task to sift through the data and findings of our other researchers to some up with your best answer to this question. Can you help the science community turn a vital corner in our efforts to better understand how genetics make us unique?
Task
- To begin this venture, you will be assigned to research teams. Each team will review all of the findings we have gathered here at the Symposium and form your best response to our essential questions.
- The essential questions that we believe will help us answer the ultimate question of why there is individuality among human beings are as follows:
- Why aren't we exact copies of our parents?
- How to we receive the traits we portray?
- How do babies develop completely different traits from their ancestors?
- Why do certain humans survive better in one environment (climate, terrain, etc.) than another?
- Once each team has conducted their research, the symposium will regather and a debate will ensue to determine the best answer for each of these questions based on your collective efforts.
- Finally, each of you will prepare your own one page synopsis of the findings to answer our true question, what creates individuality in populations?
The learning objectives for this lesson are:
- To understand how traits are passed from generation to generation
- To understand how mutations can result in new traits
- To understand how genetic variations lead to individuality within populations
Process
PART I
- With your research team, you will take a look at our first piece of evidence by using the following link:
- You will read through the information presented and attempt to come up with an answer for our first question. That question again is, why are we not exact copies of our parents?
PART II
- With your research team, you will explore our second collection of data by using the following link:
- You will read through the information presented and attempt to come up with an answer for our second posed question. That question again is, how do we receive the traits we portray?
PART III
- With your research team, you will delve into our third collection of recent discoveries in a game like format using the following link:
- You will read through the information while working your way through the game and then attempt to come up with an answer to our third question. That question again is, how do babies develop completely different traits from their ancestors?
PART IV
- With your research team, you will take a look at our last piece of data by using the following link:
- You will read through the information presented and attempt to come up with an answer for our final question. That question again is, why do some humans survive better in one environment (climate, terrain, etc.) than another?
As a group we will come back together and discuss all of the answers developed by your individual groups to ensure we have a good understanding of the collection of data that we explored. Following this group discussion each individual member will be tasked with crafting a one-page response to our encompassing essential question. That prompt again is what creates individuality in populations?
Evaluation
| Unsatisfactory | Needs Improvement | Satisfactory | Exemplary |
Score | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Working and Collaborating with Partner | Does not work with or collaborate with lab partner at all. | Collaborates and works with partner a little. | Collaborates and works with lab partner for most of the assignment | Collaborates and works with lab partner for entire assignment. | |||
| Understands concept of lab activity | Shows no understanding of lab exercise. Attempts no effort to understand material. | Shows a little understanding of lab exercise or shows little effort to understand material. | Demonstrates that he or she understands most of the concept of lab exercise and participates for the most part. | Demonstrates superior knowledge and understands concepts of the lab exercise fully. | |||
| Class Participation During Exercise | Shows no desire or effort to participate in class discussion. | Shows little desire and barely participates in class discussion. | Actively participates in class discussion. Has mastered most concepts with few errors. | Completely participates in class discussion and demonstrates he or she has mastered lab concepts. | |||
| Lab Report Paper | Did not do lab report. | Did lab report but had several errors on it, either factually or grammatically. | Did lab report but had one or two errors on it, either factually or grammatically | Did lap report and had no errors which demonstrates complete mastery of topic. |
Conclusion
What I want you to take out of this lab exercise:
- Traits are inherited from one generation of organisms to the next
- Some traits are dominant and some are recessive.
- Recessive traits only show when both genes (alleles) are recessive (bb).
- When a dominant gene is present the dominant trait will show up. When two dominant genes are present it results in co-dominance such as the case with people with type AB blood as A and B types are dominant genes.
Points I want you to think about:
- What other effects do genes have on humans (such as genetic disorders) or other rare abilities (such as being extremely tall)?
- What other factors can cause traits to appear or disappear (such as mutations or other environmental factors)?
Good job everyone!