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Lesson Plan
Towson University

Mystery Disease

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
How did scientists determine the cause of illness before technology? Science scholars play the role of medical researcher in an engaging guided inquiry activity. Using observations, technical reading, and Punnett squares, learners...
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Lesson Plan
Towson University

Mystery of the Crooked Cell

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Can your class solve the Mystery of the Crooked Cell? Junior geneticists collaborate to learn about sickle cell anemia in a fascinating lesson plan. The included materials help them to examine the genetic factors behind the disease...
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Activity
Biology Corner

Pipe Cleaner Babies

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Ever been told you have your father's eyes? How did it happen? Young biologists get a hands-on experience in meiotic gene expression with a fun pairs-based activity. Participants use pipe cleaner chromosomes with trait beads to make...
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Unit Plan
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Curated OER

Artificial Selection

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
The second lesson in the series begins with a starter activity discussing wild versus domesticated animals. Then, scholars play a card game, with optional variations, to emphasize artificial selection. Next, they attend a field trip to a...
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Unit Plan
North Carolina State University

Exploring Genetics Across the Middle School Science and Math Curricula

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Where is a geneticist's favorite place to swim? A gene pool. Young geneticists complete hands-on activities, experiments, and real-world problem solving throughout the unit. With extra focus on dominant and recessive genes, Punnett...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

More than Skin Deep

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
From crime to paternity, DNA fingerprinting has revolutionized how the world views inherited traits. Science sleuths investigate the facts about DNA profiling through a variety of activities. The Teacher's Guide includes printable...
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Lesson Plan
K20 LEARN

You're My 'Karyo'-Type: Karyotype For Chromosomal Disorders

For Teachers 9th - 11th Standards
What's your type? Genetically speaking, of course! Immerse your class in the world of karyotypes through an insightful activity from the K20 Center. Scholars take on the role of genetic counselors to determine the karyotype of offspring...
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Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Trait Tracker

For Teachers 3rd Standards
Help mice beat the odds with an exciting activity about traits. Biologists discover the role of diet and other factors on animal traits by participating in a simulation activity. Teams collect and evaluate data to understand how certain...
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Lesson Plan
Agriculture in the Classroom

Roll of the Genes

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Animal reproduction in sheep and cattle is explored with the help of Punnet squares. Scholars employ tools using probability to conclude the color of wool a sheep's offspring will have. Acting as animal geneticists, pupils then take...
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Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Pedigrees and the Inheritance of Lactose Intolerance

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What, exactly, causes lactose intolerance? Scholars view a video describing a Finnish study that determined why some people are tolerant while others are intolerant. They then use the data from the study to reenact the experiment and...
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Interactive
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Genes Get Shuffled When Chromosomes Exchange Pieces

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Some genes link to others that have implications for inheritance. A set of resources lead pupils through the history of this discovery. They explain how chromosomes recombine and which parts are more susceptible to this linkage....
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Interactive
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Genes Come in Pairs

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Mendel was the first to look at individual traits within a species. Step in his shoes as an interactive lesson takes users through his journey. An animation describes the design of his experiments and how he isolated individual traits to...
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Interactive
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Children Resemble Their Parents

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Gregor Mendel's work revolutionized agriculture from an art to a science. Explore Mendel's work with an interactive lesson that includes animations, video, and practice problems. The instruction describes the early discoveries that...
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Lesson Plan
Kenan Fellows

A Farmer’s Challenge to Breed to the Greatest of Grapes

For Teachers 7th Standards
What does your class know about GMOs? Are they savvy to selective breeding? Challenge young minds to engineer the greatest crop of all time using a hands-on genetics unit. Learners discover the good and bad details of selective breeding,...
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Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Lactase Persistence: Evidence for Selection

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
What's the link between lactase persistence and dairy farming? Biology scholars analyze data to find evidence of the connection, then relate this to human adaptation. Working individually and in small groups, learners view short video...
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Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Developing an Explanation for Mouse Fur Color

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Whether or not you think mice are nice, you'll love the colorful activity! Scholars examine evidence for evolution in the rock pocket mouse through video, discussion, and collaborative work. Learners watch a video regarding variation in...
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Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

The Teosinte Hypothesis

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Don't want to sound corny, but your class will be a-maize-d by an engaging activity! Explore the history of the modern corn plant through a video and Punnett squares. Junior genetics experts get hands-on experience with actual research...
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Unit Plan
Anthropological Association

Race: Teacher Guide: Race

For Teachers 6th - 8th
How has the concept of race changed over time? Explore the genetic, cultural, and social aspects of race through a series of impactful activities. Scholars discover how race is influenced by inherited traits, examine census records to...
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Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Zebrafish and Skin Color

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed Standards
You may not know if that zebrafish in your fish tank is a model citizen—but it is definitely a model organism! What can we learn about ourselves from a tiny zebrafish? Discover more about the polygenic trait of skin color through a...
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Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Understanding Variation

For Teachers 9th - Higher Ed Standards
Does where we live influence how our bodies express genetic traits? Explore variation in human skin color with an activity that incorporate video and hands-on learning. Individuals model the relationship between phenotypes and genotypes,...
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Interactive
CK-12 Foundation

Sex-Linked Inheritance

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Sex-linked traits indicate a gene's location on a specific chromosome. Scholars learn about sex-linked traits and the specifics behind color blindness in the videos. Then they complete the online interactive to apply their knowledge...
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Unit Plan
Columbus City Schools

Diversity of Living Things

For Teachers 8th Standards
Here's a topic classes can really dig—the fossil record. Use the well-organized and thoughtful road map to take eighth graders back in time to unearth the answer. Learn how our climate has changed, and how organisms have changed along...
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Lesson Plan
Give and Let Live

Blood and Transplant: Organs

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Who donates organs, and how do organ donations work? The third instructional activity in a four-part series discusses the tremendous need for donor organs of all ages and backgrounds. A variety of materials, included with the teacher's...
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Activity
It's About Time

Is It Heredity or the Environment?

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Himalayan rabbits are black when raised at low temperatures and white when raised at high temperatures. Young biologists participate in an experiment using seeds to demonstrate the ways the environment can influence an inherited...